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UNITED STATES OF AMEEICA. 









SPARKS 



FROM ^ LOOOM:OTIVE; 



OR, 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 



By th.e ^ntlior af! "Belle Brittan's Tlietters. 

V " A moment bright, then gone for ever." 



NEW YORK: 

DERBY & JACKSON, 119 N"ASSAU STREET. 

1859. 



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Entered according to Act of Congress, in the j'ear 1859, by 

DERBY & JACKSON, 

la the CIerk'8 Office of the District Court of the United States for the Southern DUtrict of New York. 



W. H. TiNsoN, Stereotyper. Qbo. Russell & Co., Printers. 



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^0 

MY BROTHER JOURNALISTS 

OP 

EUROPE AND AMERICA, 

THIS 

VOLUME OF NEWSPAPER LETTERS 
18 GBATEFULLY INSCRIBED. 

H. F. 



CONTENTS 



LIFE AT SEA. 



A Pleasant Party — Young America — ^Lord Bury — The "Asiatic 
Lottery "—The " Leader " — An Original Song . . .11 

A GLANCE AT LIVERPOOL. 

First Glimpse of Europe — Green Erin — The Lazarus of Nations — 
Old England — Liverpool — The Docks — The Streets — The Ladies 
— Police — Hotels — Chambermaids — Old Virginia — Jas. McHenry 
—A Song for the Ship 22 

THE WATER CURE. 

English Railways — Great Malvern — ^Worcestershire and its Sauce — 
Roman Remains — Classic Ground — Tewksbury — Stratford-on- 
Avon — The Water Cure — Modus Operandi — ^Distinguished Visit- 
ors — ^New Sensations — An Ancient Water Hypn . . 31 

THE BURNS FESTIVAL. 

Merry Carlisle — ^Lancaster Castle — ^Poor Debtors' Prison — ^The Bor- 
der Castle — Mary's Walk — The Cathedral — ^Meg Merriles — ^The 
Book of Job — Gretna Green — A Piquant Mystery — ^Dumfries — 
The Burns Banquet — The Poet's Tomb — Leigh Hunt on Burns — 
Isa Craig's Prize Poem — An Impromptu Speech . . - 45 



VI CONTENTS. 



THE MEMORY OP BURNS. 



Birthplace and Tomb — The Commemoration — Tributary Genius — 
Burns Clubs in America — Dumfries — St. Michael's Church — The 
Poet's Funeral — Celebrations — Highland Mary — Religion — ^Hospi- 
tality — The Brothers Maxwell 67 

A VISIT TO ABBOTSFORD. 

Fnder the Weather — " All full inside " — ^A sorrowful Companion — 
Edinburgh — A Live Directory — The Scott Monument — ^Rare Auto- 
graphs — ^Madeline Smith — ^Abbotsford — Its Relics and Venerable 
Cicerone — A Drive with a Butcher — Melrose Abbey . . 75 

THE GREAT METROPOLIS. 

The -^PPrtJach by Night — Immortal Memories — -From Edinburgh 
to London — ^Berwick — Newcastle — York — Morley's Hotel — A 
Heart-Luxury — The Handsome Thing — ^Mr. Dallas and Nautilus 
Hallett — ^The Foreign Office — Opening of Parliament — ^The Queen 
— A Beautiful Revelation — Prince Albert — ^Lord Derby — The 
Duke of Cambridge — Rosy Peeresses— The Duchess of Malakoff 
- — ^England and Mexico 89 

HAMPTON COURT. 

The Magnificent Cardinal— Splendid Paintings — Nell Gwynn^-Ben- 
jamin "West — Heela and Soles for Dinner . . . .103 

THE GREAT EASTERN. 

A Leviathan among Minnows — Herbert Ingram — Captain Harrison 
— ^The first Steamboat — ^William Symington — Robert Fulton — Bet- 
ting on the Great Ship's speed — ^A Fish Dinner at Greenwich 111 



A WORD ABOUT THE WOMEN,, 

English Hotels — Dress, Masculine and Feminine — Hats Off— Femi- 
nine Feet — The Veracity of Mother Goose — Buxom Beauty — A 
Bonnie Lassie — English Hospitality — Sights of all Sorts . 117 



CONTENTS. VU 



ENGLISH CELEBRITIES. 



Sir Bulwer Lytton — His "Works — Personal Appearance — ^Diiiner — 
Bulwer's Opinion of Prescott, Irving, Cooper — The Earl of 
Malmesbury — Kind feelings toward America — Lord Lyons 125 

MORE CELEBRITIES. 
An Evening with Leigh Hunt — Abou Ben Adhem — ^Byron — ^Words- 
worth — ^Burns — The Cosmopolitan Club — Tom Taylor — ^Milnes — 
Layard — Mrs. Norton — Stirling — Hughes . . . . 133 

WASHINGTON'S BIRTHDAY. 

A London Election — A London Jam — The American Association — • 
Mount Yernon Tomb — ^A Pleasant Incident — The Crown and the 
Sovereign 142 

WESTMINSTER ABBEY. 

How Sleep the Brave— The Poet's Corner— Epitaphs— S. C. Hall's 
Lecture — The Hopeless Author of " The Pleasures of Hope" — 
His Funeral — A Voice from Heaven — Banishment of ChUde 
Harold's Dust— St. Paul's— The Tombs of Nelson and Welling- 
ton — Ruins 152 

THE BRITISH MUSEUM, ETC. 

Preserved Trifles — Literary Curiosities — Madame Tussaud's 
Rooms — Startling Resemblances — Madame St. Amaranth — The 
Chamber of Horrors — ^President Buchanan — American Pano- 
ramas — ^Albert Smith — A Political Prediction . . . 161 

LIFE AND DEATH. 

A Sad Bereavement — A Father's Sorrow — Christian Sympathy — • 
Covent Garden Theatre — " The Undying One " — The Queen and 
Prince Consort — Royal Jealousy — Victoria as Wife — The Pynes 
and Harrison — Mr. and Mrs, Barney Williams — ^Albert Smith — 
Mr. and Mrs. Howard Paul — Government Reform — Sir Samuel 
Canard 169 



Vm OONTEiNTS. 

A WORD ABOUT THE FINE ARTS. 

Princely Patronage — ^Beautiful Pictures — Costly Collections — ^The 
Belle Jardiniere — A Fifty Thousand Dollar Raffaelle — The 
Dusseldorf Gallery 1*78 

METROPOLITAN MISERY. 
The London Police— A Dark Picture— Eighty Thousand Traviatas — 
The Sham Philanthropy of Exeter Hall— Something worse than 
Slavery in America — The Theatre — Chippendale — Charles Kean — 
Anna Bishop — ^Madame Pico — The Royal London Yacht Club — 
Honorary Members 184 

PARKS, PALACES, BANKS AND CLUBS. 

The Antiquity of London— Babies and Ladies— The Marquis of 
Lansdowne — ^Portrait of Sterne — ^Pork and Cheese — ^The Old 
Lady of Threadneedle street— A Valuable Bit of Paper— Cords 
of Bullion — Mint Drops — A good Word for American Credit — 
The Reform Club— Au re voir 192 

FIRST IMPRESSIONS OF PARIS. 
The Channel- Sea-sickness— An Orange Blossom Party— Cuddling 
before Folks — Calais to Paris — Grand Hotel du Louvre— Mardi 
Gras — Bal Masque — ^Bois du Boulogne — Such is Life . . 201 

NAPOLEONISM. 

The Tomb of the Emperor— The Religion of France— The Empress 
Eugenie— The Prince Imperial— Louis Napoleon on Horse-back 
—The Napoleon Circus— The Fashions— The Cafes—Priests— 
American Spendthrifts in Paris . . . . . .212 

LIFE IN PARIS. 

The Carnival — Lorettes and Pirouettes — Sunday Amusements — 
Butterfly Philosophy — Parisian Women — The Benign Reign of 
Napoleon— The Opera — A Grand Concert — The Emperor at the 
Theatre — Grisi, Mario and Alboni 222 



CONTENTS. IX 



MATTERS AND THINGS IN PARIS, 

The Sickles Tragedy — Jealousy — The Paris Verdict — Madame Gue- 
rabella — Bogus Counts — ^Dr. Gaillardet — Count Sartiges — Ameri- 
cans in Paris — Judge Mason — Consul Spencer — A Grand Review 
— A Monster Concert — Versailles — The Peace Congress . 230 



PERE LA CHAISE. 

The Romance of Death — The Commerce of the Grave — Devotion to 
the Dead— The Pantheon of Paris— Abelard and Eloise — The Opera 
— Tamberlik — Penco — Frezzolini — ^Meyerbeer's New Opera 237 

FROM PARIS TO FLORENCE. 

Adieu and au revoir — A Calypso Island — Unsophisticated Inno- 
— cence — The Tree of Knowledge — ^Modesty of Parisian Yices — 

A Pleasant Incident — Lady French Railways — ^Forests of 

Fontainebleau — Lyons — The Mediterranean — Marseilles — The 
Steamer PausiUipe — English Nobs and Snobs — Americans Abroad 
— Genoa — Its Odors and Black Spiders — ^Leghorn — ^Meeting of 
the Sisters — Pisa — ^Florence 244 

A GLANCE AT FLORENCE. 

The Rainbow Hues of Poesy — The Etrurian Athens — The Cascine — 
Santa Croce— More Black Spiders — The Boboli Gardens — Nature 
and Art — ^Virgins, Original and Pictured — An Hour with Powers 
— ^His "Webster and Washington — Off for Rome . . . 257 



THE ETERNAL CITY. 

The Route to Rome — Boccacio — Siena — Piccolomini — Beggars — 
The Dome in the distance— Entrance to the City — The Crowd of 
Strangers — The Coliseum — St. Peter's — The new Yenus — Ame- 
rican Artists and their Studios — The melodramatic spectacle of 
St. Peter's— The Pope riding in a Chair — Contrasts — The Hon. 
Mr. Stockton — Consul Glentworth — Americans in Rome — Ex-Pre- 
sident Pierce — A brief Biography 263 

1* 



X CONTENTS. 

NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS. 

Rome in Seven Days — Ruins — Religion — Black Spidera — The Pass- 
port Nuisance — A Casus Belli — A Hint for Congress — The Pontine 
Marshes— St. Paul — Vesuvius in the Distance — Naples, its Rags, 
and its Odors — Christ in the Tomb — The dying King — ^Pompeii 
— Sir John and Lady James — A new Translation of Tasso . 2*76 

PARIS REGAINED. 

Paradise after Purgatory — M Neapolitan Swindle thwarted — The 
Messagerie Imperiale — Civita Vecchia — Charlotte Cushman — 
Her Sister's Death — Gathering for the War — Jolly Soldiers — ^Pop- 
ular Enthusiasm for the Emperor — His Programme — The Pope 
between two Fires — The Dream of Liberty — Departure of Louis 
Napoleon — The War Loan — The Opera — Frezzolini — ^A Scene 
at the " Italiens " — La Reine du Theatre — Madame Camille — Ris- 
tori — Her proposed Visit to America — ^Adieus . . . 286 

HOMEWARD BOUND. 

London in its Glory — The Change of Ministry — The Great Battle 
Begun — The Allies Victorious — The Deluge to Come — The Head 
of the Church in a Tight Place — A Tonic for the Victims — Eng- 
land and America — Mother and Child — Gov. Seward Lionized in 
London — Lord Napier — Morley's Hotel — The Steamer Fulton ~ 
Priests and Prayers — Sandy Hook — The Last Spark . . 298 



SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIYE. 



Life at Sea. 

A Pleasant Party — Young America — Lord Bury — The "Asiatic 
Lottery" — The "Leader" — An Original Song. 

Waterloo Hotel, Liverpool, 

Tuesday^ Jan. 18, 1859. 

At 9f o'clock on tlie morning of the 6tli of 

January, tlie steamsMp "Asia" glided from her 

dock in Jersey City ; and before the middle of the 

afternoon we saw the last of American earth sink 

below the horizon. With feelings that I shall not 

attempt to analyze or describe, I bade " my native 

land good-night," and descended to the dinner-table. 

The sky was clear and the sea smooth; and the 

seats that had been taken were nearly all occupied. 

There were less than fifty passengers on board ; but 

it required no extraordinary sagacity to perceive 

11 



13 SPAEKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OE, 

that we had among us men, and women, too, of no 
common order of character and talent. On the re- 
moval of the cloth, George Francis Train, Esq., one 
of the liveliest, wittiest and best-tempered of men, 
proposed that the company present should resdlve 
themselves into a mntnal-admiration society; and 
that each passenger should do all in his power to 
make the voyage a pleasant one. The suggestion 
was warmly responded to ; and from that moment, 
up to the arrival of the ship in Liverpool, every 
waking hour was winged with pleasure, — songs, 
sentiments and speeches being the order of every 
day; and, although a majority of our party were 
homeward bound, yet there seemed to be a prevail- 
ing feeling of regret at the shortness of the passage, 
and the breaking up of our happy family. At 8 
o'clock on Sunday morning, in something less than 
eleven days, the Asia was lying in her stone-cradle 
at Liverpool, and her passengers were scattering to 
their various destinations. 

Of our fellow-passengers whose names are familiar 
to the public, I shall take the liberty of mentioning 
Lord and Lady Bury, Mr. and Mrs. Geo. F. Train, 
Mr. and Mrs. T. W. Kennard, Mr. K. S. Butter- 
field, Mr. !N'icholas Carter, M. E. Sands, and Mr. 
Tipton "Walker. These names by no means em- 
brace all the " talent of the company ;" but they are 



LIFE AND LIBEETY IN EUROPE. 13 

the names most accustomed to type, and may there- 
fore be used with less fear of giving offence to their 
owners. Lord Bury is not only a man of mark, but 
a " good fellow" in the best sense of the word. He 
is the only son of the Earl of Albemarle, and a 
nephew of Lord John Russell. Although but 26 
years of age, he has held high official positions in 
every quarter of the globe, and is now a leading 
member of Parliament, representing the ancient 
city of !N"orwich. He has been an officer in the 
Scots Fusileer Guards, Aid-de-Camp to Lord Fred- 
erick Fitzclarence, Commander-in-Chief of Bom- 
bay ; Secretary to Lord John Bussell when Premier, 
SujDerinten dent-General of Indian Affairs in Canada, 
and is now Chief of the Three Lidian Tribes. He 
is about six feet in height, with light hair and blue 
eyes, and is one of the best skaters and cricketers 
in England. Thoroughly educated, highly accom- 
plished, with the head of a statesman and the heart 
of a philanthropist, Lord Bury is already regarded as 
one of the most popular legislators in Parliament ; 
and no man of his years stands a better chance of 
becoming Premier of England. He is the special 
favorite of Lord John Eussell, Lord Palmerston, 
Milnor Gibson, Mr. Gladstone, and other leading 
lights of Liberalism. He succeeded in carrying 
through the House of Commons the bill " legalizing 



14 SPAEK8 FEOM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OK, 

marriage with a deceased wife's sister," by a large 
majority, after it had been unsuccessfully urged for 
twenty years ; and also distinguished himself on the 
Hudson's Bay question. His recent visit to 
America was for the purpose of effecting certain 
contracts with railroad companies in Canada, in 
connection with the Galway line of steamers, in 
which his lordship takes a deep interest. Lady 
Bury is the eldest daughter of Sir Allan Mcl^ab ; 
and a more beautiful, affable, accomplished woman 
I have rarely met. "With a sweet smile and a plea- 
sant word for all who approach her, not a passen- 
ger left the ship without a cordial " God bless her ;" 
and so we all drank — 

" Long life to Lord Bury's wife, 
Sir Allan's lovely daughter." 

At the dinner-table, on the first day out, Lady 
Bury remarked that, as there was an editor on 
board, we must start a newspaper, for the occupa- 
tion and amusement of the company. The proposi- 
tion was loudly applauded, and Train, who is a liv- 
ing pun, suggested that it should be called "The 
Asiatic Lottery," in honor of the captain and his ship. 
Lord Bury moved that, at the conclusion of the 
voyage, the newspaper should be disposed of by 
raffle ; and that the proceeds of the tickets should 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 15 

be given to the Society for tlie Eelief of Ship- 
wrecked Sailors. All these suggestions were 
adopted with great enthusiasm ; and the next morn- 
ing, and for several successive days, the pens of 
the contributors were earnestly at work. The 
articles were handed every day to Lady Bury ; and 
published by being read aloud after dinner. And 
here I may add that, notwithstanding there were 
five regular meals daily, when the tables were 
loaded with the most sumptuous and varied fare, 
yet every dinner was a delightful pastime, as well 
as a rich repast, occupying, at least, three hours. 

The contributions to our improvised journal 
swelled to some two hundred letter-sheet pages ; 
and many of them were of a high order of talent. 
It proved that not only was every man of our com- 
pany a singer, an orator, and a wit, but a poet and a 
journalist as well. Lord Bury contributed a story, 
entitled the " Posthumous Papers of Dr. Blanco," 
not surpassed by any similar production of Dickens. 
Train gave us volumes of statistics, and poetry by 
the yard; while a young man on board, by the 
name of Burns, a clerk in the "New York house of 
Morton, Grinnell & Co., threw off gems in rhyme 
worthy of his great namesake. Mr. Smith, of Staf- 
fordshire; Mr. Coggill, of ISTew York; Mr. Kennard, 
of London ; and Mr. Carter, of the well-known firm 



16 SPAEKS FEOM A LOCOMOTIVE; OK, 

of A. S. Henry & Co., also contributed liberally to 
the columns of the " Lottery." A clever artist, Mr. 
Burton, sketcbed tbe portraits of tbe contributors ; 
and these, witb tbe various articles, were made into 
a large volume, wbicb was put up at £21- — ^forty- 
two tickets, at 10s. eacb. Mrs. Malcolm Grabam, 
of IsTew York, won tbe prize ; but very kindly 
placed tbe original copy in tbe bands of Lord Bury, 
wbo will furnisb eacb subscriber, wbo desires it, 
witb a copy, wbicb is to be privately printed. Tbe 
money raised was also placed in tbe bands of Lord 
Bury, to band over to tbe above mentioned 
cbarity. 

Tbe following, as nearly as I can recollect, is tbe 
Leader, wbicb I may quote witbout quotation marks : 



PLATFOEM OF THE ASIATIC LOTTEEY. 

It is customary for editors in issuing a new journal 
to occupy tbe leading column witb a platform of 
purposes and principles. "We begin witb tbe frank 
avowal tbat our object is simply ready money and 
future fame. We believe in money, it is power ; 
and man's cbief end is to become a power on tbe 
eartb. For effecting an immediate object tbere is 
no influence so potent. As society is now organ- 
ized money is better tban blood, or beauty, or 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. lY 

genins. It makes gentlemen of clowns ; nobs of 
snobs ; presidents of peasants ; and kings of clods. 
But when it comes to tbe question of fame, wbicli 
the first ITapoleon says is merely a great noise, the 
Press is the only trumpet worth blowing. It makes 
governors and chief magistrates in America ; and 
if free in Europe, would unmake kings and empe- 
rors, and play shuttle-cock with diadems and 
coronets. The " London Times," will outlive a 
thousand Ministers, if not the government of Great 
Britain. The Press not only makes and mars repu- 
tations, but it makes fortunes also. The " immortal 
Bonner," of the " 'New York Ledger," who is yet 
on the sunny side of thirty, is publishing 500,000 
sheets a week, at a clear profit of $150,000, a year ; 
the " New York Times," " Tribune " and "Herald," 
are each piling up, at least $100,000 per annum ; 
while the proprietor of the " Illustrated London 
ISTews," who sends 30,000 copies a week of his 
mammoth edition to the United States, is realizing 
an annual income of $250,000. We, too, hope to 
make money by our enterprise, although we may 
not reach the magnificent sums of the above named 
journals. The Press is the fulcrum for which 
Archimedes sighed. Without its magic aid, no 
great enterprise can succeed, while under its com- 
bined influence " there is no such word as fail." 



18 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVEJ OR, 

It takes the thought of the individual around the 
world, until the inspiration of one mind becomes 
the impulse and the guide of the masses. In the 
United States our men of high ambition like to see 
their names kindly mentioned in the English 
newspapers ; and, we believe, that the most 
eminent members of Parliament are both gratified 
and benefited by transatlantic commendation. The 
joy and the power of Fame increase in proportion 
to the distance from which her trumpet tones are 
echoed. 

But we can only hint at the power of this mighty 
engine, which even its ablest conductors do not yet 
fully comprehend. Like the erratic forces of steam 
and electricity, its power is greater than we know. 
Our present purpose is a philanthropic as well as a 
pecuniary one. We want money ; but we want it 
for a worthy cause. Never a wind blows upon the 
broad ocean over which we are now so serenely 
gliding, but proves an ill- wind to some poor sailor, 
causing shipwreck, suffering and death. For these 
brave-hearted heroes of the sea, whose lives are spent 
in a perpetual struggle with the elements, our jour- 
nal lifts it pleading voice. Beneath the opal dome 
of God's great temple, with the blue billows dancing 
around us, peacefully, securely, and even joyously 
floating over an untroubled ocean, with all the 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUKOPE. 19 

winds aud waves sleeping as tranquilly as the pas- 
sions in an infant's breast, we, too, can hear the 
mingled voice of history and prophecy sighing: 
" And ever more there is sadness on the sea." And 
then the white-robed angel of Charity, more lovely 
than the Yenns in her cradle of pearl, and her veil 
of foam, appears to ns, and appeals to ns, to shed a 
few golden tear-drops from our pockets in behalf of 
that great sorrow, whose perpetual moan is heard 
,in every wave that breaks on the shore ; and whose 
sad music, lingering and echoing in the little shell, 
touches the heart of every child with a feeling of 
vague and infinite pity for the innumerable multi- 
tude of the fair and the brave whose white bones 
tessellate the floor of every sea. 

Tlie following poem was contributed by Lord 
Bury, to whose facile and felicitous pen the " Asiatic 
Lottery " is indebted for its most brilliant gems : 



A FAREWELL. 

Our stip speeds o'er the waters, outward bound. 

Through loop-holes of innumerable stars 

There streams down glory from the inner heaven, 

'Tis night upon the ocean, clear and calm, 
And onward, onward o'er the heaving seas, 
There lies a silver pathway to the moon. 



20 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OR, 

Time was when such a scene was dear to me, 
When quiet thoughts would nestle at my heart, 
And bear it homeward on their love-sped wings. 

But now, lost love, oh never, never more 
Mine ear shall drink the music of thy voice, 
Nor linger spell-bound on thy sweet low tones. 

The years since first I met thee had recast 
Thy girlish form in woman's loveliest mold, 
When once again I held thy hand in mine. 

And thou wert still mine own ; thy sweet clear eyes 
Looked up and- blessed me, and thy soul met mine, 
Trembling and quivering with a thrill of love ! 

I worshipped thee and lost thee — with thy name 
The volume of my love is closed forever ; 
The place is vacant that thou mayest not fill. 

Would God, oh dear one, we could pause and date 
A new existence from our last farewell. 
Nor let the future mingle with the past. 

Bind up together memory, grief and love ; 

Weight them with this intolerable care. 

And sink them deep beneath the stream of time. 

I have only time to add that on arriving at Liver- 
pool, we found that a " commercial panic" of Rye 
days' duration had jnst shaken the financial world 
of Europe to its, centre, caused by a casual ISTew 
Year's Day remark of Louis !N"apoleon. But a 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN ETTEOPE. 21 

reaction has already taken place, and the fiscal 
barometer is rising again. l!Tevertlieless, Europe is 
evidently volcanic. 

Immense preparations are being made for the 
"Burns Centennarj" tbrongliout the United King- 
dom. In Liverpool there is to be a grand concert 
and ball ; but the great celebration will take place 
at Dumfries in Scotland, whence you may look for 
the next spark from your locomotive correspondent. 



22 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OE, 



A Glance at Liverpoof. 

First Glimpse of Europe — Green Erin — The Lazarus of Nations — 
Old England— Liverpool— The Docks— The Streets— The Ladies 
— Police — Hotels — Chambermaids — Old Virginia — Jas. McHenry 
— ^A Song for the Ship. 

Waterloo Hotel, 

January \9th, 1859. 

The first sight of European land may well excite a 
new sensation. It is the land of our ancestors and 
of our literature; and, next to the place of our 
nativity, the dearest land on earth. It was on the 
morning of the tenth day from IsTew York that, 
going on deck, I saw, for the first time, the green 
hills of Erin, green, even in midwinter, within 
half a mile from us. Cape Clear was some four 
hours astern ; and the Asia was shooting past Skib- 
bereen and the Skerries. And that, I remember, is 
the fatherland of Moore and Emmet, of Lever and 
Lover ; the land of poetry and poverty ; of melody 
and misery ; as well as the dear " Ould Country " 
of all the Paddies and Biddies who have made our 
fires and scrubbed our floors ; dug our ditches and 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 23 

wasted our clothes since America declared her 
independence and became the poor emigrant's 
paradise. There she lies — the Lazarus of nations. 
"We pass the Cove of Cork, and meet a screw 
steamer (a cork-screw ?) coming out. Just then, a 
little cloud above us improvised a shower, and a 
beautiful rainbow suddenly beamed like a smile of 
hope upon the brow of that dearly 

" loved Island of Sorrow." 

I have faith in the pleasant omen. There is " a 
good time coming " for Ireland. Her exiled sons 
afe returning by thousands from the golden "West 
with pockets full of money, and hearts full of filial 
and fraternal affection to comfort the closing days 
of aged parents, and to cheer and animate their 
toiling countrymen and brothers. For Lazarus, 
too, there is a glorious resurrection. 

"We speed on into the Channel — ^into the night. 
Holyhead light flashes its bright pathway upon the 
waters. That is the welcome ray from Old Eng- 
land. England, " whose morning drum beat, fol- 
lowing the sun in his rising," etc., etc. England, 
the land of poets, philosophers, statesmen, soldiers, 
and sailors ; the land of Alfred, and of Yictoria ; 
the land of roast-beef and plum-pudding. Eng- 
land, " whose flag has braved," etc., etc. Another 



24 SPAKKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OE, 

beacon light comes " streaming o'er tlie sea." It is 
the " Rock Light," on the Mersey — a great rosy 
cone of light; and over the bows of the ship the 
lamps of Liverpool gleam like parallel rows of 
stars. At eight o'clock on Sunday morning, in less 
than eleven days from !N"ew York, the Asia is 
backing into her dock, after making, what every 
passenger pronounced it to be, a pleasure voyage 
across the Atlantic. I will not linger over the 
heartfelt regrets of our companions at parting with 
the captain, the ship, and with one another. We 
had been as members of one family; everybody 
contributing to everybody's comfort and amuse- 
ment all the way over ; and even they who were to 
pass from the ship into their own home, seemed 
reluctant to leave a scene that had been, from 
beginning to end, a perpetual festival. 

The Liver230ol Docks are the first objects that 
impress the stranger arriving from the ocean. They 
are stupendous works, extending five miles in one 
magnificent range of solid walls of rock, and nearly 
all built within the last twelve years. The CoUing- 
wood Dock, one of the largest, is "Q-Ye hundred 
yards long, one hundred and sixty yards wide, and 
covers a space of thirteen and a half acres. These 
docks are owned by the borough of Liverpool; 
and the dues collected the past year amounted to 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 25 

$1,800,000. Tliese dues are assessed at a rate to 
merely pay tlie interest on the cost, tlie docks being 
self-supporting, and not yielding a revenue. When 
shall we see the JSTorth and East rivers of 'New 
York lined with shipping-berths like these ? The 
town of Liverpool (it is not a city, although it has 
a population of half a million) strikes me favorably, 
all but the cloudy skies and smoky atmosphere. 
The public and private buildings are very hand- 
some, and the streets, although narrow, are exceed- 
ingly clean. The walks and crossings, even on 
a rainy day, will scarcely soil the soles of the shoes. 
And yet the ladies, whose dresses are never long 
enough to drag, make a flaming display of red 
petticoats, and often wear their heavy leather 
gaiters laced up the centre of the foot and 
ankle with red ties. Thus far I have not seen a 
hoop in Liverpool ! Of the comparative beauty of 
the women, I am not prepared to pronounce an 
opinion. As yet I have had only confused glimpses 
of red petticoats, ruddy cheeks, light hair, and 
large soles; and, I may add, shocking ugly bon- 
nets, a sort of cross between a " wide-awake " and 
a " Bloomer," with a piece of narrow lace around 
the brim, and ^ feather or a ribbon in the crown. 

. The policemen on the dock are objects of interest. 
They are exact likenesses of the conventional police- 



26 SPAKKS FEOM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OK, 

men of the stage ; and look as if they were born for 
the office. They are remarkably well dressed, good 
sized meHj wearing dark belts numbered, and iron- 
grooved hats. A blow upon an English police- 
man's head is as harmless as a blow upon a negro's. 
In personal efficiency and dignity of bearing they 
are decidedly superior in appearance to any similar 
body of officials in America; and, so far as my 
limited observation has extended, I find them 
more obliging to strangers and more carefully at- 
tentive to their duties. They are paid for being 
civily as well as watchful, as all policemen should 
be ; and railway conductors, ditto. 

!N^ext to the police and the custom-house officers, 
who proved to be not at all troublesome (only inquir- 
ing if I had any American reprints, or over a hundred 
cigars), came the cabmen, the " hansom " men, and 
the ^' fly " men, with their various outlandish-look- 
ing vehicles, all of which were "one horse con- 
cerns." But the drivers were civil in their speech, 
and moderate in their charges ; the latter item being 
not only fixed but enforced by law, while both 
vehicle and driver are conspicuously numbered; 
and the fine for the violation of the rules is from 
ten to twenty dollars. From the cab we step into 
the hotel, and this, too, compared with our Ameri- 
can traveller's palaces, is a mere one horse concern. 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE, 27 

The " Waterloo," where I found rooms had been 
engaged for me, is a famous and venerable in- 
stitution. Mr. Lynn, the proprietor, wears a ruffle 
shirt, and is a very gentlemanly old gentleman; 
but he spends his time in the coffee-room with his 
carving knife in hand in a way that would astonish 
our Cranstons, Stetsons and Hildreths, w^hile the 
landlady receives the guest, and the rosy-cheeked 
chambermaid, with her well-combed hair and smart 
little cap, escorts him to his room. These chamber- 
maids are charming institutions; attentive, talka- 
tive, intelligent ; and, as a general thing, very faith- 
fully represented in looks, dress and manners by 
the same dapper little piece of loquacity inevitable 
in every English farce. If one happens to fall sick 
in their hands (and the temptation is rather 
strong) they make the tender est of nurses ; and will 
come into your room at night and " tuck up the 
bed " with as much simplicity and nonchalance as 
they would ^x a child in the cradle. They seem to 
be as unconsciously modest as [N^ature herself. This 
tucking up business is not an idle ceremony ; for, 
instead of lying dow7i to bed in England, we have 
to climb up to the bed, which is as high and round 
as a horse's back; and, to one who hasn't "the 
hang of the thing," the covering slides off with 
great facility. I confess to a preference for our 



28 SPARKS FEOM A LOCOMOTIVE; OE, 

American beds, from whicli there is no danger of 
falling out. The pillows of the English beds, so far 
as I have tried them, are thin and skimpy. An 
affectionate couple who should endeavor to adopt 
the sentimental idea of two heads on one pillow 
would find their noses very near neighbors. But 
the towels, especially in the bathing-rooms, are of 
the most liberal dimensions, being large enough for 
table-cloths. For " drying up " purposes they are a 
vast improvement upon the American pattern. The 
fare at ihe " Waterloo " is excellent. In quantity, 
variety, cooking and serving, nothing is omitted that 
can be desired. Most of the guests take their 
meals in the coffee-room, on the first floor ; but thus 
far I have not been left to that solitary sort of enter- 
tainment, having been domesticated with a charm- 
ing and most hospitable family, who have the finest 
parlor in the hotel, with a private table that is 
always surrounded with a company of choice spirits. 
The men-servants of the hotel wear black coats and 
white cravats; and are exceedingly polite and 
deferential in their manners. The cost of living 
per diem is about the same as at the " 'New York 
Hotel," or at the " St. Charles." 

Of Liverpool society I have seen but little. At 
a pleasant dinner party at the house of Mr. Tucker, 
the American Consul (who is now in the United 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 29 

States), I found myself in a familiar Old Yirginia 
family rather than an English home. Mr. Tucker 
is very popular with the merchants here, both resi- 
dent and foreign ; and everybody is regretting that 
his salary is not commensurate with his generous 
hospitality. 

Among the distinguished men I have met here, 
none has impressed me more as a man of intelli- 
gence, energy and influence, than James McHenry, 
Esq., who for eighteen years has ranked as one of 
the leading merchants of Liverpool ; and during 
that period has handled more American produce 
than any man living. He is now one of the largest 
financial oj^erators in Europe, and is engaged in 
several colossal projects, involving millions of capi- 
tal which has been placed at his control, and 
embracing every quarter of the globe. In the 
midst of his more gigantic schemes Mr. McHenry 
is projecting a mammoth hotel in Liverpool on the 
American plan ; a Water Cure establishment in 
"Wales, and has within a few days purchased the 
" London Spectator," (formerly edited by the great 
Sam Johnson) and placed Mr. Thornton Hunt, son 
of Leigh Hunt, in the editorial chair. Mr. McHenry 
is one of the live men of the age, and of him I may 
have more to say hereafter. To close with a sort 
of docJcs-ologj, I will quote an impromptu song 



30 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OE, 

wMcli a friend of mine handed to Lady Bmy before 
entering the docks — to be snng by the "entire 
strength of the company ;" 

A SONG FOR THE SHIP. 
(dedicated to lady bury.) 

A song for the ship, the brave old ship 

That has borne us so swiftly along, 
Here's honor and fame, to the Cunard name 

And his good old ship so strong. 

Our brave Captain Lott shall ne'er be forgot, 

For a right good fellow is he ; 
With an eye fore and aft, he watches his craft 

As she gaily glides over the sea. 

Then for captain and ship here's a hearty hip-hip, 
And another for the good ship's crew 5 

For honor and worth come not of birth, 
To be noble is nobl^ to do, 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 31 



The Water Cure. 

English Railways — Great Malvern — Worcestershire and its Sauce — 
Roman Remains — Classic Ground — Tewksbury — Stratford-on- 
Avon — The Water Cure — Modus Operandi — Distinguished Visit- 
ors — New Sensations — An Ancient Water Hymn. 

CrREAT MALVEiRN, WoaCESTERSHIRE, 

January 21, 1859. 

My last letter closed with an intimation that the 
next would be written at Dumfries ; but, consider- 
ing what I have gone through within the last three 
days, I am prompted to report these unexpected 
experiences. One travels mainly for the sake of 
new sensations ; and I have had, at least, several 
since leaving Liverpool. To start from the begin- 
ning : the railway station seems to have been built, 
as Shakspeare's verse was written, " I^ot for a day, 
but for all time." And the same may be said of 
the road, also ; and of all the public works in Eng- 
land. The railway carriages, as they call them 
here, are roomy and luxurious ; and only six seats 
in a compartment. A delightful contrast to the 
miscellaneous multitude one is compelled to en- 



32 SPAEK8 FEOM A LOCOMOTIVE; OE, 

counter, even in tlie " ladies' car " in America, 
The road on whicli I travelled (the London and 
I^orthwestern) is perfectly smooth; and the car- 
riages roll along so evenly that one may write as he 
runs, as well as read. They are comfortably 
warmed by thin metallic boxes lying on the mats, 
and serving as footstools; thereby entirely dispens- 
ing with those disgusting '' Salamanders," which 
make winter-travelling on the American railways, 
not only unhealthy, but almost unendurable. I do 
not wonder that Englishmen fret at the burnt 
atmosphere of our cars, especially, as is often the 
case, when jets of tobacco-juice are continually 
played upon the red-hot stove. 

On leaving the station, the train dives into the 
bowels of the earth, and comes out on the other side 
of Liverpool. The darkness of the tunnel is abso- 
lute and palpable. On emerging into daylight, we 
find ourselves dashing, as it were, through a garden 
at the rate of forty or fifty miles an hour, but so 
smoothly, that this fearful rate of speed is not felt, 
and only perceived by the kaleidoscopic flashing by 
of fields, farm-houses, villages, manufactories, and 
cities. At the principal stations, the polite conduc- 
tor unlocks the door, and informs us exactly how 
long we may indulge in " refreshments," or in look- 
ing at the " neat-handed Phillis " who serves them 



LIFE AND LIBERTT IN EUROPE. 33 

— ^pies, cakes, sandwiclies, wine, beer, and spirits, 
and also hot tea and coffee. At each stopping- 
place policemen are vigilant, while the employees 
of the road are actire in attending to their duties. 
Every wheel is tested by a stroke of the hammer, 
and every part of the machinery examined. There 
are no less than three thousand men in uniform 
employed on the London and Great Western and 
l>rorthwestern roads, extending over an aggregate 
distance of six hundred miles. "With roads so 
firmly constructed, and so carefully and efficiently 
managed, accidents are of rare occurrence. The 
tracks are all fenced, or rather, hedged and walled 
in, so that there is no need of " cow-catchers ;" and 
notwithstanding the velocity at which the engines 
are run, an English railway carriage is unquestion- 
ably the safest mechanical conveyance in the 
world. 

My destination, on leaving Liverpool, was Grreat 
Malvern. Being a little " out of repair," Mr. 
James McHenry, a zealous hydropathist, insisted on 
my repairing to this place ; and not only urged me 
to come, but brought me along, and placed my 
" case " bodily in the celebrated establishment of 
Dr. Wilson, who has achieved immortality by cull- 
ing the most obstinate mala^ie^ of the mos^t 
eminent men and women i^ ^ngfendj anaong 

2* 



34 



others, Sir Edward Biilwer Lytton, whose " Con- 
fessions of a Water Patient " have converted thou- 
sands to the pure faith, and made the fortunes of 
the water doctors, not only of Great Malvern, but 
throughout England. 

The place itself is beautiful beyond description. 
It is situated in the very heart of England, over- 
looking the rich valley of the Severn ; and about 
equi-distant from London and Liverpool. The 
village is shelved upon the smooth sides of a moun- 
tain range that rises to a height of some fourteen 
hundred feet ; and the views are varied, extensive, 
and surpassingly lovely. The whole region round 
about is classic and historic ground ; and the very 
atmosphere redolent of poetic associations. "We 
approach it by passing through Stafford, Wolver- 
hampton, and what is generally known as the 
" Black Country" — where the smoke of the manu- 
factories (and flames too) from myriads of tall 
chimneys ascendeth up forever, blackening the 
face of heaven, and blotting out the light of day. 
Leaving the train at Worcester, a one horse fly, 
with three inside, drags us slowly up a winding 
road, a distance of about seven miles — when, 
beneath the tender light of the full moon (whose 
dear old face smiles on us everywhere), this lovely 
little city, sitting on a hill whose light can not 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. o5 

be hid, and whose beauty can never fade from my 
memory, breaks upon our eyes. The picture is per- 
fect, or rather the infinite series of pictures, blend- 
ing like beautiful mosaics into the grandest of 
panoramas. We have passed through the narrow 
streets of Worcester, whose quaint old houses and 
ancient cathedral drive our thoughts back over a 
period of a thousand years. The city is now cele- 
brated for pretty girls, the manufacture of kid 
gloves, and Lee & Perrin's sauce. Our road runs 
through the field where Cromwell fought Prince 
Rupert, and won what he piously called his 
" crowning mercy of Worcester." I^ot far distant 
is the " Eoyal Oak," where the fugitive Charles 
hid from his godly pursuers — an event celebrated 
to this day by the loyal citizens of Worcestershire, 
who, on the 19th of May (I think it is), decorate 
their hats, their houses, and their horses with the 
leaves of the royal oak. 

Yonder are the remains of an encampment made 
by the Romans thirty-eight years before the birtli 
of Christ, and probably occupied by the Great 
Csesar himself! ISTear the broad valley of the 
Severn rise the lofty hills of Cheltenham, one of 
the most famous watering-places in England, and 
where crowds go to drink of the seven springs of 
pure water .that form the source of the Thames (as 



36 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OK, 

unlike tlie river at its confluence with the sea, as 
the infant in its cradle to the sinner in his grave ;) 
not far thence is Stratford- on- Avon — 

" Where sweetest Sliakspeare, Fancy's child, 
Warbled his native wood-notes wild." 



And there, too, is Tewksbury, memorable in 
history, and "Warwick Castle, and Kenil worth, and 
Old Coventry, a place avoided by men of ragged 
coats and soiled reputations since the days of 
Falstaff. But I am wandering from my subject, as 
well as from my locality. To return to Malvern 
The place is celebrated for the mountain behind it, 
the valley before it ; for its ancient Priory Abbey 
its pure water, which comes sparkling from St, 
Anne's Well and the Holy Well, like liquid dia 
monds ; for its exhilarating atmosphere ; and lastly 
for its numerous and famous Water Cure establish 
ments. It has also been long a fashionable sum- 
mer resort. Victoria lived here before she was 
Queen : and the exiled Adelaide, of France, finds a 
solace for her griefs in the sweet air and beautiful 
scenery of Malvern. 

I have confessed myself a hydropathic patient. 
I am more — a disciple. It is good, either for the 
sick or the sound, to be here. But water, applied 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUEOPE. 37 

internally and externally, is not the only element 
to be credited in tlie account of cures. The air, the 
diet, the exercise, the regular hours, the rest, and 
the entire abstinence from all excitement — mental, 
moral and physical ; it is all this that works those 
marvellous cures — almost as miraculous as the 
restorations effected at the Pool of Bethesda. 

Before arriving in Liverpool, I took a severe cold 
by sitting in a draft at the dinner table, in a vest, 
on the back of which water had been spilled, and 
this gave me a new sensation in a touch of the 
rheumatics or lumbago. For this I am here — ^but 
for four days only. Independently of this slight 
local difficulty, which is rapidly vanishing, these 
water courses have already made me feel like a 
new-made being; and I can fully appreciate and 
cordially indorse all that the most enthusiastic 
beneficiaries of the system have written in praise 
of it. At Dr. "Wilson's establishment, which is 
simply a hotel, liberally supplied with watering 
accommodation, the parties are put through the 
various operations of the sitz, the shower, the 
torrent, the lamp, and the several other different 
kinds of baths, three times a day ; at six o'clock, 
A.M., at twelve o'clock, and at six in the evening ; 
and after each process he is ordered to dress and go 
out to walk as quickly as possible. In all the forms 



38 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OR, 

of the bath administered to me thus far, there is a 
sudden plunging from hot to cold, which, at first, is 
"positively shocking;" but the violent rubbing 
soon restores the equilibrium ; and b j the time the 
performance is over, the glow is perfectly delight- 
ful. The most agreeable and efficacious bath I 
have taken is the lamp operation ; and, as this is 
the most novel one, I will briefly describe the 
modus o^perandi. The patient, in the original cos- 
tume of " our first parents," before they knew 
enough to be ashamed of themselves, is " called to 
the chair." This chair has a wood bottom, with a 
cushion on it, and a light frame around it. His 
feet are put in a hot bath, a lighted lamp is placed 
beneath the chair, when the bather begins to wrap 
thick woollen blankets around the neck of his 
patient, which, falling upon the floor, entirely 
exclude the air. These blankets are piled on, until 
the head of the sitter seems to be sticking out of a 
huge stack of wool ; then, large linen sheets are 
wrapped around the entire mass ; and, lo ! the dew 
begins to fall. Cold water is drank copiously, and 
the perspiration runs down the arms and sides of 
the body in streams. Each of the three million pores 
upon the surface of the skin is opened ; and the 
fluids in the little canals, extending in the aggregate 
to a length of twenty miles (if the anatomists have 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUEOPE. 39 

estimated them correctly), are particularly active. 
The impurities upon the surface come off, and the 
obstructions under the surface come out. The 
rationale and the utility of the operation are pal- 
pably apparent. "When the blankets are removed, 
the patient steps into a cold bath, and a deluge of 
cold vt^ater is poured over him. He is then rubbed 
dry by the quick and vigorous hands of an expert, 
and left to dress himself, feeling light and elastic 
enough to jump over the moon. 

The chair I sat in, while undergoing the glowing 
perspiration, has been filled by many illustrious 
predecessors ; among them. Sir Edward Bulwer 
Lytton, Charles Dickens, the Marquis of Anglesea, 
Lord Alfred Paget, Admiral Codi'ington, Sir Henry 
Bulwer, Sir Hamilton Seymour, Mr. Tennyson, Mr. 
Bright, Mr. Roebuck, Sir Edwin Landseer, Admiral 
Elliot, Lord Seaton, Sir John Barrow, the Bishop of 
Oxford, the Count de Paris, etc., etc. Among the 
Americans who have been here to recuperate are. 
Miss Charlotte Cushman, Dr. Mutrie, and Bishop 
Potter, of Philadelphia ; Mr. James Murdoch, and 
Mr. W. H. Aspinwall, and P. B. Sweeny, of 'New 
York. Dr. Wilson, the proprietor of the establish- 
ment, has made and married a fortune; and, 
although independently rich, continues to practise 
his profession con amove. He has published a 



40 SPAKKS FEOM A LOCOMOTIVE; OE, 

work on Hydropathy, which Messrs. Fowler & 
Wells of 'New York, who have done so much for 
the cause of human health in the United States, 
might find it for their interest to republish. 

In summer, like J^ewport and Saratoga, Great 
Malvern overflows with visitors. The attractions 
are, pure air, delicious water, delightful scenery, 
pleasant drives, and charming society. To these 
have been added several hydropathic institutions, 
the most famous of which are Dr. Wilson's and Dr. 
Johnson's. Mr. McHenry, my " guide, philosopher 
and friend," who became an early convert to the 
Water Cure system, and who attributes his own 
physical energy and business success to the treat- 
ment he has received at Dr. Wilson's, introduced 
us with what sounded more like a command than a 
request that we should be jput through the course, 
and restored to a ''state of perfect salubrity ^^ in three 
days / Dr. Wilson was absent ; but Dr. Stummes, 
his first assistant, examined our " cases," and pre- 
scribed accordingly. My companion in afiliction, 
" Young America Train^'^ who had just returned 
from a three months' land-buying, railroad con- 
tracting, speech-making, and book-writing trip to 
America, had become a little feverish from over- 
excitement and lack of sleep. My own ailment I 
have already hinted at. The medicine for each and 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 41 

for all, was simply water. But the mode of appli- 
cation varied with the different symptoms ; and in 
this the healing efficacy evidently consists. It is 
" water, water, everywhere, and not a drop (of any- 
thing else) to drink." We take it hot, and we take 
it cold ; in the form of vapor, and in the form of rain. 
It rains up, and it rains down ; it rains in front, and 
it rains iu the rear ; it rains on the right, and it 
rains on the left ; it sprinkles, it showers, it ponrs, 
it comes, as it were, from pepper-boxes; and it 
comes from buckets. We drink it ; we sit in it ; 
we lie in it ; and we are packed in it. Three times 
a day — at six, at twelve, and at six again — the 
water-demon takes possession of our mortal bodies, 
and never leaves them until he has rubbed his 
victim into the semblance of a crimson statue. 
But, oh ! what a change — what a renovation ! In 
the first place, there is the blessed sense of clean- 
ness — a feeling " akin to godliness ;" and then of 
softness, suppleness, and strength. The yellow skin 
turns white; the white tongue turns red; the 
sunken eye dilates, and the hazy orbs grow bright. 
Everything in nature looks more lovely; we can 
almost see God, so translucent are the skies, so 
clear are our perceptions, so divine our intuitions. 
We almost worship the pure element that has 
given us a new sense ; and among our pleasantest 



42 SPAEKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OR, 

dreams of heaven are tlie " still waters," the " crys- 
tal streams," and the " rivers of life," which the 
apostle saw in the vision of Revelation flowing 
from the throne of God. 

If what I have written sounds extravagant, let 
me refer the reader to the " Confessions " of Sir 
Edward Bulwer Lytton, who has found in the pure 
fountains of Great Malvern his best inspirations, as 
well as a fountain of health and happiness. The 
plain, but nutritious diet; the early retiring and 
early rising ; the regular exercise, and the serenity 
and joy induced by the sweet consciousness of recu- 
peration in every nerve, vein, muscle, bone and 
sinew of the body — are a better and surer cure for 
any form of disease than all the medicaments ever 
invented for human ills, from the experiments of 
Esculapius to the quackeries of Dr. Bennett. 

Blessed be the "Water-Cure, if it only inculcates 
the luxury of physical cleanliness, and prevents 
men from making apothecary shops of their sto- 
machs ! 

I have only time to add, that if any of our 
wealthy valetudinarians feel a little tired of !N"ew- 
port and Saratoga, they will find something here at . 
Great Malvern wherewith to refresh themselves. 
It costs less to cross the Atlantic than to live ten 
days at a fashionable watering-place hotel ; and no 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 43 

more, after they get here, than it does to live at 
home. 

Many poems, as well as letters, have been writ- 
ten in praise of Great Malvern. From an old song, 
'bearing date in the time of James L, I quote a few 
Btanzas : 

" Great Malverne, on a rock 
Thou standest surely ; 
Do not thyself forget, 

Living securely ; 
Thou hast of blessings store, 
No country town hath more, 
Do not forget, therefore. 

To praise the Lord. 

" Thou hast a famous Church, 
And rarely builded ; 
No country town hath such. 

Most men have yielded, 
For pillars stout and strong. 
And windows large and long, 
Remember in thy song 

To praise the Lord. 

" When western winds do rock 
Both town and country. 
Thy hill doth break the shock-^ 

They cannot hurt thee ; 
When waters great abound. 
And many a country's drown'd, 
Thou standest safe and sound, 

Oh ! praise the Lord. 



44: SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OR, 

" Out of that famous hill 
There daily springeth 
A water passing still, 

Which always bringeth 
Great comfort to all them 
That are diseased men, 
And makes them well again 

To praise the Lord. 

" A thousand bottles there 
Were filled weekly. 
And many costrels rare 
Por stomachs sickly ; 
Some of them into Kent, 
Some were to London sent. 
Others to Berwick went. 

Oh ! praise the Lord." 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 45 



The Burns Festival. 

Merry Carlisle — Lancaster Castle — ^Poor Debtors' Prison — The Bor- 
der Castle — Mary's Walk — The Cathedral — Meg Merriles — The 
Book of Job — Gretna Green — A Piquant Mystery — Dumfries — 
The Burns Banquet — The Poet's Tomb — Leigh Hunt on Burns — 
Isa Craig's Prize Poem — ^An Impromptu Speech. 

Dumfries, Scotland, 

Wednesday, Jan. 26, 1859, 

Leayikg Liverpool at half-past two o'clock on the 
afternoon of the 24:th, by the London and Caledonia 
Eailroad, I arrived at the famous old border town of 
" Merry Carlisle " at about half-past seven in the 
evening, passing through "Wigan, Lancaster, Win- 
dermere, and a picturesque portion of the celebrated 
" Lake District." But why this sombre old city is 
called " Merry Carlisle " I do not know, except for 
the lively times it must have seen during the wars ; 
or, it may be taken from the following lines, which 
somebody has sung or written : 

" King Arthur lives in merrie Carlisle, 
And seemly is to see ; 
And there with him Queene Guenerer, 
That bride so blithe of blee." 



46 SPARES FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OE, 

Catching a passing glimpse of the stern, round 
towers of Lancaster Castle, my imagination began 
to busy itself in picturing the stately halls within, 
when a lady passenger spoiled the romance by in- 
forming me that it was now occupied as a " Poor 
Debtors' Prison." In England, a poor man perils 
his liberty by running in debt for a loaf of bread, 
even though it is to save his family from starving. 
These prisoners could, doubtless, a tale unfold quite 
as harrowing as the fictitious horrors of "Uncle 
Tom's Cabin." 

I slept, or rather passed, the night in Carlisle — a 
city founded one thousand years before Christ. 
The sense of antiquity was oppressive; and the 
stirring scenes that have been enacted here might 
well make one feel wakeful. There stands the grim 
old castle, which for seven centuries has withstood 
the battering of the elements, as well as a hundred 
border sieges ; occupying, doubtless, the very site 
of the fortifications built by the Eomans in the time 
of Agricola. William the Conqueror commenced 
erecting the present pile in 1072, and his son, Wil- 
liam Eufus, completed it. During the long wars 
between England and Scotland the Castle of Carlisle 
was taken and retaken more times than history 
has patience to recount. Among its most famous 
Governors were Robert Bruce and Richard III. In 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 4T 

its dismal dungeons George Fox was tortured ; and 
here, also, was imprisoned Scotland's beautiful 
queen, whose sufferings call forth an eternal 
anathema upon the memory of Elizabeth : 

The lored in high and princely halls. 

In low and lonely cots, 
Stands Mary the illustrious, 

But hapless Queen of Scots." 

" Mary's Walk " awakens the saddest reflections ; 
the very stones pressed by her weary feet have a 
grief-worn look ; and they have no doubt been 
witnesses to other than Mary's tears. On one side 
of the " Walk," which extends over a segment of 
about one hundred feet, the wall is breast high ; on 
the other, there is a low iron railing or balustrade. 
Looking down into the Castle, nothing was to be 
seen but the ensigns and engines of " grim-visaged 
war;" but, looking abroad over the smiling coun- 
try, even the sad eyes of the beautiful prisoner must 
have sometimes lighted up with gratitude and joy 
at the loveliness of the landscape unrolled before 
her. 

The Cathedral of Carlisle is as old as the Castle, 
although the greater portion of it was destroyed by 
fire in 1292. Before this time, Henry I., inconsol- 
able at the loss of his children, who were drowned 



48 



on their way from !N'ormandj, erected Carlisle into 
a distinct see, and from tliat day to this the Cathe- 
dral has been an object of great interest. The 
Divine Fuller, writing of it in the seventeenth cen- 
tury, says : " It may pass for the emblem of the 
militant church, black but comely, still bearing in 
the complexion thereof the remaining signs of its 
former burning." Beneath its aisles repose the 
ashes of Paley, the moral philosopher; of Robert 
Anderson, the Cumberland Bard ; and the heart of 
Richard the Lion. As I entered this venerable 
sanctuary — at once a temple and a mausoleum — at 
10 o'clock in the morning, there came a solemn 
gust of music from the mighty organ, pealing 
" through the long-drawn aisle and fretted vault," 
that seemed at once to make both the building and 
myself tremble with awe. It was almost as grand 
as the sighing of the wind through the veiled forest- 
arches in the Cemetery of Buenaventura. My first 
impulse was to fall on my knees and ask to be for- 
given ; but prayer is a strictly private and confi- 
dential matter between the soul and its God. " En- 
ter into thy closet; and — shut the doorP Before 
leaving Carlisle I visited the house in which Sir 
Walter Scott wooed and won his bride, which 
now exhibits cakes and oranges for sale in the win- 
dows ; and tried to ^n upon the identical spot in 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUEOPE. 49 

the river where Jeannie Gordon, the Gipsy {Meg 
Merriles\ was ducked for witchcraft, until she 
died, like a martyr, with the name of "Prince 
Charlie " on her lips. 

Possessed with the spirit of antiquity, before go- 
ing to bed I read the Book of Job, which Mr. Web- 
ster used to call the sublimest epic ever written ; 
and, reflecting upon the fact that the city of Car- 
lisle had existed during one half of the period 
which the literalists accord to the earth's duration, 
the " History of the United States" seemed but as 
the occurrences of yesterday ; and the life of man 
as " a vapor that appeareth for a little time, and 
then vanisheth away." 

I cannot leave this moss-grown town without a 
word in commendation of its excellent hotel, and 
the very polite and intelligent proprietor thereof, 
Mr. William Gosling. Thus far, he is the only 
man in his business that I have seen in England 
who comes up in appearance, manners and educa- 
tion, to the high standard of our first-class hotel 
proprietors in America. 

But here I am in Dumfries, the Mecca of my spe- 
cial pilgrimage, and my pen still loiters by the way. 
This very irregular, and not very attractive-looking 
little city, is about an hour's distance from Carlisle, 
and some fifteen miles north of the English border. 

3 



50 SPAEK8 FROM A LOCOMOTIVE J OK, 

The railway runs through Gretna-Green, where so 
many thousands of fugitives have been welded to- 
gether by the village blacksmith, under the old 
Scotch law ; but a recent Act of Parliament having 
made these marriages, and the issues thereof, ille- 
gitimate, the blacksmith's occupation's gone; and 
instead of forging hy menial chains, he must return 
to the not less respectable if less profitable business 
of forging horse-shoes. Just before the abrogation 
of the old law, a dashing couple drove into Gretna 
in desperate haste, to be tied, paying most liberally 
for the performance ; but upon this condition : that 
the certificate, copied into the Register, should be 
sealed up between two leaves, and never opened 
until so ordered by the parties to the contract. 

A few days afterward, some Paul Pry of a news- 
paper reporter came along, whose curiosity was 
greatly excited by the romantic mystery, and, on 
holding the double leaf up to the light, the name of 

Lord was distinctly legible, as " the party of 

the first part," but the name of the lady he could 
not make out; so he published the name of his 
lordship in full, which, of course, caused something 
of a fluttering in certain domestic circles. 

The only other town of any note on our way is 
Annan, which is pointed out as the " place where 
Thomas Carlyle went to school," Ecclefechen, not 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 51 

far distant, being the place of his birth. On arriv- 
ing in Dumfries, although the day is dismal, blowy, 
snowy, sleety, yet we find the whole town turned 
inside out ; and the streets thronged with proces- 
sions of masons, farmers, tradesmen, etc., etc., car- 
rying gay banners with mottoes from the poems of 
the great Bard, while all the 

" Lads and lasses in their best 
Are dressed frae top to toe." 

Triumphal arches span the streets, covered with 
holly-leaves and wreaths of evergreens ; the bands 
and the pipers are playing the liveliest Caledonian 
airs ; horses are proudly prancing, with their manes 
and tails done up in rainbow-hued ribbons : while 
pistols and fire-crackers contribute a sort of Fourth- 
of-July confusion to the scene. The procession 
pauses before the lowly dwelling from whose little 
window the poet took his farewell look of the sun, 
while the band wails a solemn dirge ; and it again 
halts before another house, in which he, for a short 
time, lived. The commemoration here seems to be 
no idle ceremony, but a heartfelt homage of love, 
in which all classes unite, from the highest to the 
humblest. At 4 o'clock there is a grand dinner at 
" the Mills," for which eleven hundred tickets are 
sold; and, at the sam^ hour, the banquet of the 



52 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OR, 

'' Burns Club " at the Assembly Rooms, for which 
not a ticket has been purchasable, for love nor 
money, for many days. But the committee, on 
learning that a couple of American enthusiasts had 
come three thousand miles to see the sacred spot 
that contains the ashes of Robert Burns, and to 
listen to the local legends of his life, held an im- 
promptu meeting, voted us tickets, and gave us 
seats near the chairman at table. The eating part 
of the dinner was very good, the " haggis " being 
a conspicuous dish. The drinking part, which 
lasted longest, was confined to sherry, ale and 
whisky; the latter being evidently not only the 
national but the natural drink of Scotchmen. They 
are at it at all hours, and too much accustomed to 
it to get easily tipsy. "What leathery linings their 
stomachs must have ! and noses, too, for snuffing is 
almost as universal as tippling. 
^ .The programme of toasts will be especially in- 
teresting to Scotchmen in America : 

CENTENARY ON THE BIRTH OF ROBERT BURNS. 

Jan. 25, 1859. 

PUBLIC DINNER IN DUMFRIES. 

Mark Napier, Esq. Chairman. 

J. M. Leny, Esq., of Dalswinton; James Mackie, Esq., M.P.; 

W. A F. Browne, Esq. ; and Thomas Aird, Esq., Croupiers. 

The Queen Chairman 



LIFE AN» LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 53 

The Prince Consort and other members of the Royal 
Family Chairman. 

The Army and Navy , . . , Chairman. 

The Immortal Memory of Burns Chairman 

The Memory of the Widow of the Eldest Son of Burus. .Chairman. 

The Health of the Sons of Burns Chairman. 

Scottish Literature Dr. Browne. 

The Biographers of Burns Dr. Ramage. 

English Literature ,,.,,...., Mr. Carruthers. 

A Happy Meeting to all celebrating the Centenary of 
Burns this evening the world over Capt. Noake. 

The Peasantry of Scotland Mr. Mackie. 

The Fine Arts Mr. Aird. 

The Nameless Song and Ballad Writers of Scotland . Mr. McDonald. 

American Literature Mr. Strachan, 

The Health of the Chairman Mr. Leny. 

The Health of the Croupiers . , , , ,.,.., Chairman, 

The only departure from the above was occasioned 
hj the absence of Mr. J^apier, which placed Dr. 
Browne in the chair; and the call upon "the 
gentlemen from America " to respond to " Ameri- 
can Literature." On the right of the Chairman 
was seated Col. William Mchol Burns, eldest son 
of the poet ; and on the left the Provost of the City. 
I was introduced to Col. Burns in the " Committee 
Eoom," and fancied I felt something of the glowing 
blood of the poet-father in the warm grasp of the 
hand of his son. Col. Burns is about sixty-five years 
of age, below the medium height, with rather a full 



54 SPARKS FKOM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OR, 

figure — ^his " Ijart haffets wearing tliin and bare," 
and a remarkably pleasant eye (said to be a little like 
his father's) beaming tbroiigli liis spectacles. James 
Glencairn, the younger brother, bears a greater 
resemblance to his mother; and, like her, sings the 
immortal songs of the poet with peculiar feeling 
and effect. The banquet-room was graced with an 
admirable portrait of Burns ; and also a portrait of 
his " Bonnie Jean," in her old age. She died, I 
believe, in 1834, having been left a widow in 1Y96, 
only twenty-eight years of age, and remarkably 
handsome. She had many offers of marriage ; but 
justly considered it a higher honor to remain the 
widow of Burns than to wed the noblest in the 
land. 

The speaking at the banquet was of the highest 
order of dinner-table talk. There was an enthusi- 
asm pervading the assembly that amounted to an 
inspiration. The Chairman was most felicitously 
eloquent, and Mr. Carruthers, editor of the " Inver- 
ness Courier," and author of the best edition of 
Pope extant; Mr. Aird, editor of the "Dumfries 
Herald," and a poet ; the Hon. Mr. Mackie M. P., 
and Mr. Strachan, a talented young banker of the 
town, all spoke to the toasts assigned them elo- 
quently and effectively. Col. Burns made two or 
three brief speeches in the course of the evening, in 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 65 

whicli lie stated that the poet used sometimes to 
say in moments of despondency, '^I'll be thought 
more of a hundred years hereafter than I am now." 
George Francis Train stirred up the enthusiasm of 
the company to a high pitch by telling them that 
in all his roamings through various lands, from 
Ballerat to Balaklava, he had found Scotchmen 
occupying foremost positions everywhere ; and, 
alluding to the fact that Patterson, the founder of 
the Bank of England, was a native of Dumfries, 
added, that the reason why no Scotch clerk was 
ever employed in that institution was the fear of 
the managers that in less than six months he would 
have the entire control of the bank. [Uproarious 
laughter and applause.] The songs that followed 
the speeches were excellently sung, and the whole 
entertainment passed off to the utmost delight of 
everybody. At the early hour of ten o'clock the 
company broke up, many gentlemen being engaged 
to meet their " women folks " at the theatre, where 
a grand concert of Burns' songs was given, and at 
eleven o'clock Dumfries shut up for the night. But 
everywhere, within doors, the jolly neighbors — 

" Sat bousing at the nappy, 

An' getting fou and unco happy." 

The excitements of the day, the effort to appear 



56 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OR, 

respectable i*n the eyes of Scotclimeii at table by 
eating " haggis " and drinking whisky, the thrill- 
ing associations of the place, the consciousness of 
the near presence of holy St. Michael's churchyard, 
where repose 

" Ashes that make it holier ; 
Dust which is, even in itself, an immortality," 

utterly banished " Sleep from mine eyes and slum- 
ber from mine eyelids." 

So 1 lay listening to the wild, roaring wind 
" which blew as 'twad blawn its last," until the 
morning grew light enough to enable me to hunt 
up the old sexton to take me to the tomb. In the 
first place he unlocked the iron-gate of the church- 
yard, took me into the auld kirk, and showed me 
the pew that Kobin sat in — a plain, square box — 
the " lowest seat in the synagogue," and which was 
occupied by the widow until her death. The sex- 
ton then called his " gude wife," who led me 
through a crowd of gravestones to the mausoleum, 
which is erected nearly in the centre of the further 
end of the inclosure. The back wall of the interior 
contains a fine marble statue of the poet, leaning 
on his plough (which is cutting through the daisies), 
and gazing upward with a smile at the descend- 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 57 

ing Muse, Coila, who comes to hail the Bard of 
Scotland and to bind the evergreen hollj on his 
brow, 

" I saw thy pulse's maddening play 
Wild send thee Pleasure's devious way 
Misled by Fancy's meteor ray, 

By Passion driven ; 
But yet the light that led astray 
Was light from heaven." 

The beantiful marble brow of the poet was 
crowned with a wreath of holly, and his marble 
hand was holding a bunch of snow-drops, plaeed 
there by a sonsie lassie as her poetic tribute to the 
festival. 

Within the tomb there are tablets to the memo-- 
ries of all the poet's descendants, including the 
widows and children of his sons. From the mauso-. 
leum we are taken to the little house in which he 
died, which is situated at the end of a narrow,^ 
dirty, crooked street, and the corner where he used^ 
to sit, tipped back in his chair, is pointed out. 
Among the inhabitants of Bumfriea there are but 
few who remember him. Colonel Burns was four 
years old when his father died, and has a " distinct 
recollection of the funeral/' The old sexton was 
ten years old at the tim:e, bi;it do^ not reraembe:^ 



58 SPAEKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OR, 

him. Anotlier old gentleman who was fourteen 
years old when he died, " saw him often, and can 
never forget his eje ;" an eye which Sir Walter 
Scott says "literally glowed;" and which the 
Duchess of Gordon said " took her off her feet." 
Another veteran describes the Bard as " marching 
through the streets of Dumfries in the ranks of the 
volunteers, dressed in nankeen pantaloons, his 
coat turned up with red, and an old fur cap, look- 
ing equally unpoetical and unmilitary." 

But I am getting beyond my limits ; and have 
scarcely space left to allude to the universality of 
this centennial celebration, not only throughout 
Scotland, but through all the cities, towns and ham- 
lets of England. The newspapers are almost 
entirely filled with reports of the speeches and 
doings called forth by the occasion. The veteran, 
Leigh Hunt, who is nearly four score years of age, 
has written a remarkably fresh and vigorous article 
on the commemoration for the " Spectator," accom- 
panied by a lively and witty original song. The 
following extract is in the best vein of the veteran 
essayist : 

"What is the reason of this differeuce between the fond 
love of the memory of such a man as Burns, and the no love 
at all for those other great men, Shakspeare himself not ex- 
cepted ? For personal regard mixes little with our astonish- 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 69 

ment at Shakspeare's genius, perhaps because of the very 
amount of the astonishment, and because we know little per- 
sonally about him. The reason is, that Burns we do know ; 
that we are astonished at him, but not enough to be oppressed 
with the astonishment ; and that he fulfills all the other con- 
ditions necessary to universal regard. He is allied to the 
greatest minds by his genius, to the gravest by his grave 
thoughts, to the gayest by his gay ones, to the manliest by his 
independence, to the frail by his frailties, to the conscientious 
by his regrets, to the humblest ranks by his birth, to tho 
poorest among them by his struggles with necessity ; above 
all, to the social by his companionship, and to the whole 
world by his being emphatically a human creature, ' relishing 
all sharply, passioned as they,' excluding none from his sym- 
pathy but those who have no feeling for others, and having a 
reserve of pity in his contempt even for those, because they 
were not their own makers, and are but a sorry, losing kind 
of devils after all. He even ventured, like good, brave, pious 
Uncle Toby, to pity the very devil himself, and wish him 
penitent, and out of his den ; which is what few Christians, 
very few indeed, have ventured to do after him; though 
assuredly it is an expression of the profoundest Christian 
charity, and does him immortal honor." 

Tiie fifty-guinea prize poem, which was read at 
the Crystal Palace celebration in London, is the 
production of Miss Isa Craig, a native of Edinburg. 
She is a poor girl, about twenty-five years of age, 
and, until recently, supported herself and her 
mother by sewing neck-ties. She is now Assistant- 



60 

Secretary of the "ISTational Association of Social 
Science," in London, got up by Lord Brougham. 
The poem is good, not great, and bore off the palm 
from six hundred and , twenty-one competitors. 
But guineas never inspire great compositions. It 
is published in all the British journals. 



\^Froni the London Spectator.li 
Last week we noticed a very curious literary gathering in 
Madrid. This week, our attention is called to the report of 
another encounter, at Dumfries, during the celebration of the 
Burns festival. Amongst the guests present was Colonel 
Fuller, who is well known on both sides of the Atlantic as 
the editor of the "New York Mirror," and author of the 
" Belle Brittan Letters," the occasion of whose visit was told 
by himself. He was called upon to answer to the toast of 
"American Literature;" and, after the long and repeated 
cheering which saluted the toast had subsided, Mr. Fuller 
rose to return thanks, and was received by a new burst of 
'cheers. He said: 

Mk. Ottatcmatst aitd Bkithek Scots : 

" ' If there's a hole in a' your coats, 
I rede ye tent it ; 
A chiel's amang you takin' notes, 
And, faith, he'll prent it.' 

[Laughter and cheers.] I came not here to 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 61 

make a speech, but rather to report speeches. Tlie 
instrument with which I am more accustomed to 
speak is the quill, and I shall probably astonish 
you by saying that my account of this day's pro- 
ceedings will reach, perhaps, "S-Ye millions of 
readers; for in our country we don't publish 
editions of newspapers by the thousand or ten 
thousand, but by the five hundred thousand. I am 
here, gentlemen, a stranger in a strange land ; and 
yet, strange as it may seem to you, I feel quite at 
home. I have come 3,000 miles across the broad 
Atlantic, a pilgrim to the tomb of Kobert Burns. 
[Cheers.] I do not come here to represent America, 
although I have the honor to be a member of a 
Burns Club in the city of ISTew York ; but I come 
here from my own volition — ^from a spontaneous 
desire to bring, as it were, a wild-flower from the 
far West to lay upon the shrine of the immortal 
bard. [Loud cheers.] I slept last night in a city 
which they told me was founded a thousand years 
before Christ was born — the city of Carlisle — and 
before retiring to rest, with the spirit of antiquity 
upon me, I read the book of Job, and I thought as I 
read — ^What is a hundred years ? What is the life- 
time of my own young republic, compared with 
the duration of the temples, the castles, and the 
cathedrals that I see around me? What is the 



62 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OK, 

generation of man ? or in the sublime language of 
the Hebrew bard, What is man that thou art mind- 
ful of him ! Everything seemed, so far as human 
existence is concerned, brief, transitory, flitting 
away. Yet in my own land this day, there is 
everywhere commemorated — ^from the snow-clad 
forests of Maine, to the golden streams of Califor- 
nia; from the fir-fringed hills of Oregon to the 
orange groves of Florida, the name of a poet w^hose 
fame is immortal — the name of Eobert Burns. 
[Cheers.] There is a Burns Club in almost every 
city and town in the Union, and although you are 
five hours in advance of them in point of time in 
your celebration to-day, we can imagine that at about 
this hour hundreds and thousands of people are 
gathering in the far West around the festive board 
to commemorate the memory, and to honor the 
genius of Eobert Burns. Your poet was born in 
Scotland: the sphere of his life was confined 
almost within the horizon that lies around us. He 
scarcely visited England. He never went out of 
the island ; yet to-day he is one of the best-known 
men that ever lived; and taught, as I was, to 
love and revere his memory in childhood — ^for the 
songs of Burns were the cradle hymns that my 
mother used to sing to me — studying him as I 
have from my youth up, I have come to regard him 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 63 

as the greatest Ijric poet that ever lived ; and let 
me say, Mr. Chairman, that your little city of Dum- 
fries stands this night upon the very top of the world. 
Though invited to attend the celebrations in London 
and Edinburgh, and having personal reasons to be in 
Glasgow, or to remain in Liverpool to-night, I felt 
that this was the place where every true lover and 
admirer of Burns should assemble. It was here 
that that glowing eye took its last farewell look of 
the sun, and here his dust reposes. You have a 
sacred trust, gentlemen, and many a pilgrim from 
the 'New World will yet come to pay homage 
at that shrine. I have been interested and de- 
lighted by all that I have seen and heard to-night. 
If I were to say briefly to you what the people of 
America think of Burns, I should say they think 
and feel toward him precisely what your eloquent 
chairman has expressed. We look upon him as 
immeasurably above even the most brilliant of 
English, Scotch, American, or European poets, and 
we have neither sympathy nor patience with those 
who borrow theological telescopes to descry spots 
on the sunshine of his genius. I believe that 
Robert Burns was one of the most religious as well 
as patriotic of poets. [Loud cheers.] He hated 
and despised cant — he hated the God of the priest, 
who is a mere tyrant — but the divine, the all-loving 



64: SPAEKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OR, 

Father of the miiverse lie adored. He hated and 
despised the religion of the fanatic, but the religion 
of Christ, the grand religion of nature was in him. 
As a specimen of his religious sentiment, let me 
quote only one verse from his epistle to a young 
friend ; 

*' When ranting round in pleasure's ring, 

Religion may be blinded, 
Or if she gie a random sting, 

It may be little minded ; 
But when on life we're tempest driven, 

A conscience but a canker ; 
A correspondence fix'd wi' Heaven 

Is sure a noble anchor." 

The poetry and songs of Burns have nerved the 
soldier in the day of battle ; they have kindled the 
heavenward flame of devotion in the house of God ; 
and where is the young man who, in the blissful 
rapture of "love's young dream,"'does not borrow 
the golden chalice of Burns to carry the libation 
of his heart to the lips that he loves ? Everything 
he touches he has immortalized. Even Auld 
Kance Tinnock, who is mentioned in his works but 
once, is embalmed and preserved like a fly in 
amber. [Great laughter and cheers.] Burns was 
a lover, and that made him a poet : he worshipped 
at the shrine of woman — ^woman, 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. bO 

" Whom God created with a smile of grace, 
And left the smile that made her on her face." 

The lowly maid whom he addressed as " Mary in 
Heaven," will live forever, encircled by the bright 
halo of his genius — ^the very Madonna of pas- 
sionate devotion. Where is the qneen that will 
outlive in story that sweet flower of Burns, com- 
memorated in such lines as these : 

" Let Bourbon exult in his gay gilded lilies, 

And England triumphant display her proud rose ; 
A fairer than either adorns the green valleys, 
Where Devon, sweet Devon, meandering flows." 

After relating an anecdote of our soldiers in the Crimea 
singing "Annie Laurie " in chorus on the eve of an engage- 
ment, in illustration of the power of song, Mr. Fuller quoted 
a saying of Mackay the poet, that before we can estimate the 
effect which that simple hut noble song, " A man's a man for 
a' that," has produced in raising the dignity, and patriotism, 
and loyalty of Britons, and indeed all throughout the world, 
wherever it was known, we must first try and estimate the 
value of one day's sunshine in ripening the cotton and the 
corn. "In conclusion," said Mr. Fuller, "I will simply 
express my gratitude to the gentlemen who did me the honor 
of mentioning my name in connection with this toast, and I 
thank you all for the cordiality with which it was received. 
Though I do not take the compliment to myself, yet I accept 
it for my country. I can assure you, that Scotsmen are in 
that country found to be a very intelligent, industrious, enter- 



66 



prising, thrifty people. I had the good-fortune to be born a 
New Englander, my ancestors having gone over in the May- 
flower, and we have always considered it a great compli- 
ment, as Kew Englanders, to be called the Scotsmen of 
America." 

There is no need to say that the applause was renewed most 
vociferously as Colonel Fuller sat down. It is amongst the 
traits of American character, that ought to command the sym- 
pathy of Englishmen, that they claim their fair share of a 
property in British literature. A man does not part with the 
character of his house and lineage because he emigrates to 
Australia or America; but, on the contrary, the Americans 
have shown that they carry with them the memory of their 
ancestors. On the other hand, the man who rises in Australia 
or America becomes the pride of his family ; and that which 
is true of the individual and the family, must be, in the 
long run, equally true of the nation, with interests and lan- 
guage identical. We all have memories and hopes which are 
inseparable; and an aggregate of strength that, when once 
thoroughly understood, will command the world. 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN ETIKOPE. 67 



The Memory of Burns. 

Birthplace and Tomb — The Commemoration — Tributary Genius — 
Burns Clubs in America — Dumfries — St. Michael's Church — The 
Poet's Funeral — Celebrations — Highland Mary — Religion — Hospi- 
tality — The Brothers Maxwell. 

Dumfries, Scotland, 

Jan. 25, 1859. 

One hundred years ago to-day m the little town of 
Ayr, ah out seventy miles distant, a child was horn 
whose genius millions of enthusiastic admirers are 
now striving to honor. The little city of Dumfries 
holds in keeping the sacred dust of the poet ; and 
all thoughts and hearts are turned toward his hal- 
lowed tomh. He was born in a little clay biggin ; 
and died in an humble cottage in an obscure street 
in the 3Tth year of his age. But he lived long 
enough to make himself remembered and loved as 
the greatest lyric poet the world has ever seen ; and 
no man has ever lived whose birthday has been more 
widely and more warmly commemorated. ]^ot 
only in his native Scotland, but throughout Eng- 
land, Ireland, Wales and all the vast and distant 



68 SPARKS FEOM A LOCOMOTIVE; OE, 

British possessions the "immortal memory of 
Burns " is affectionately recalled and reverently re- 
garded. In onr own fair land the name of the bard 
is lauded by millions of glowing lips, while his own 
glorious songs add inspiration to a thousand festive 
circles. In his bugle blast of "Scots wha hae," 
the soldier's tonic in the hour of battle ; in his brave 
contempt of wealth and rank, which makes the poor 
man sing even in the agony of his distress "A 
man's a man for a' that ;" in his immortal lament for 
" Mary in Heaven," which finds an answering echo 
in every heart that mourns for the " love that fate 
forbids ;" and in his heaven-beating strains of praise 
and prayer, Eobert Burns has touched the strongest 
chords that vibrate in the bosom of man. A pure 
patriot, a natural Christian, an intense lover, and 
an honest man, the better he is known the more 
he is loved. At the ne:5^t centennial celebration the 
poet's tomb will be visited by pilgrims from every 
city in Christendom. But it is not my purpose to 
write his eulogium. The silent admiration, the 
heaving breast, and the flashing of the tearful eyes 
of all who read his burning words — these are the 
fittest tribute to his memory. The most beautiful 
writers, the most eloquent orators, and the most 
sympathetic poets have exhausted the realms of 
nature and fancy in gathering immortelles to lay 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 69 

upon the poet's grave. Thomas Carlyle has devoted 
his noblest essay to the Genius of Burns, and our 
own Halleck has embalmed the "Wild Kose of 
AUoway" in immortal verse. Professor Wilson 
(Christopher I^orth), in the frenzy of his enthusiasm, 
rolled upon the ground which was the scene of 
" Tam O'Shanter ;" and among the choicest relics 
at Abbotsford is a snuff-box made from a rafter 
taken from " AUoway's Auld Haunted Kirk." 

Just one year ago to-day I happened to be in 
Cincinnati, where I participated in the pleasant an- 
niversary festivities of the " Burns Club." It was 
then and there proposed to celebrate the centennial 
birthday in the same place on a grand scale, and to 
invite the attendance of delegations not only from all 
similar clubs in the United States and the Canadas, 
but from all parts of the world. The idea was a 
grand one and should have been carried out ; or, 
failing in that, it would have been well for all the 
clubs in America to have sent delegates to the 
meetings at Dumfries and Ayr, if not to the other 
great gatherings on this side of the water. But, as 
far as I can yet learn, " Young America Train " and 
myself are the only Americans in Dumfries ; at all 
events, we were the only Americans present this 
evening at the banquet of the Burns Club ; and, as 
yet, I have not found the first man here who has 



70 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OR, 

ever been in the United States ; although many of 
the citizens have friends and relatives there, con- 
cerning whom thej make many inquiries. It 
strikes them as strange that a !New Yorker does not 
happen to know John Smith, doing business in Pine 
street, or George Jones in the stationery trade. 

This ancient town of Dumfries contains only 
about 14,000 inhabitants, and of course everybody 
is known to everybody else. It is nestled among 
the l^ithsdale hills ; and the little river Nith runs 
prattling by its feet, emptying into the Solway 
Frith not far distant. On the other side of the ISTith 
is shown the Ellangowan of Scott's " Guy Manner- 
ing," and not far from it Dirk Hatteraick's cave. 
Dumfries has the honor of being the birthplace of 
Patterson, the founder of the Bank of England ; and 
in its little theatre the great Kean made his first 
appearance on the stage. The Church of St. Mich- 
ael's, whose holy precincts contain the mausoleum 
to Burns, erected in 1815, is an old building of the 
thirteenth century. The only point of interest about 
it, is the plain, square pew, looking like a prisoner's 
box, in which the Poet used to sit on Sunday, and 
his widow after him until she died in 1830. Through 
the graveyard, which is crowded with tombstones, 
lies the well-beaten pathway to the Poet's tomb. 
In the year 1796, on the 26th day of July, a day 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUEOPE. 71 

without a cloud in the heavens, in the presence of 
ten thousand weeping neighbors and friends, all 
that was mortal of Eobert Burns was here laid to 
rest. Against the poet's expressed wishes, " that 
awkward squad," the Dumfries Yolunteers, fired a 
straggling shot over the lowered coffin, and the 
weeping crowd " silently melted away." His lit- 
tle " Willie," then four years old, now Col. Burns, 
tells me he has a distinct recollection of the funeral, 
and the venerable citizens of Dumfries are full of 
reminiscences of their great Poet, of whom it was 
early predicted : 

*' He'll be a credit to us a', 
And ye'll a' be proud o' Robin." 

This pride in the memory of Bums seems to be 
equally shared by the highest and the lowest ; all 
classes, conditions and ranks are striving to do honor 
to his memory. At the various celebrations 
throughout England and Scotland, the most emi- 
nent orators, authors, statesmen, and noblemen 
have taken conspicuous parts, and during a week's 
travel in England, the portraits and the poetry of 
Burns have met my eyes at every turn. The book 
and picture trades must profit largely by the new 
impulse given to the sale of his works ; while at the 
theatres, " Burns Concerts," " Scenes from Tam 



72 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OR, 

O'Shanter," and " I^ights with Burns," are drawing 
crowded houses. One of the finest pictures brought 
out for the occasion is a beautiful engraving of 
" Highland Mary," who is sketched in a sitting pos- 
ture, wrapped in her shawl, with her feet and head 
bare — ^her face as lovely as a dream. This sweet 
young girl, who has been made immortal by the 
poet's song, around whose fair brow he has thrown 
the bright aureole of love, was the humble dairy- 
maid of Col. Montgomery. But what queen will 
live as long in history ? What beauty will dwell as 
warmly in the memory of men, or in the envy of 
women, as she who inspired those lines of sad devo- 
tion, that will be sung in tears as long as human 
hearts can feel, and human tongues can utter, the 
tender sorrows of buried love ? 

" Oh, pale, pale now those rosy lips, 

I aft hae kissed sae fondly ; 
And closed for aye the sparkling glance 

That dwelt on me sae kindly. 
And mold'ring now in silent dust. 

The heart that lo'ed me dearly ; 
But still within my bosom's core, 

Shall live my Highland Mary." 

As a reformer, social, political and religious, I 
know of no poet to be compared with Burns. He 
has conferred a new dignity upon "honest poverty " 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 73 

and made the toiling- masses happier in their fields 
and at their firesides. He has made hypocrisy 
more hideous and wolves in sheep's clothing more 
ashamed to show themselves in the church ; and 
he has driven, by his scorching satire, the orgies 
of the " Holy Fairs " from Scotland. He hates 
cant worse than the devil (for his heart was 
touched with a pang of pity for poor " Auld 
Mckie," and he even forces the "Unco guid " to 
" see themselves as others see them." He has 
made every daisy that blooms sweeter by singing 
of the sweetness of 

" The modest crimson tippit flower," 

and every lassie that lives is lovelier, since he has 
sung so sw^eetly the charms of " the lovely dears." 
And when it comes to religion where can we find 
anything better or truer or heartier than this, 

" The great Creator to revere 

Must sure become the creature, 
But still the preaching cant forbear, 

And e'en the rigid feature. 
Yet ne'er with wits profane to range, 

Be complaisance extended 
An atheist's laugh's a poor exchange, 

For Deity offended." 

I cannot close this letter without expressing a 
4 



74: SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OR, 

word of thanks to the citizens of Dumfries who 
have extended so much kindness to a stranger, who 
brought nothing to commend him to their regard 
but his enthusiasm in the commemoration. To the 
brothers Maxwell, a pair of venerable and wealthy 
bachelors, who have lived together for over half a 
century; and who might have served as a model 
for the " Cheeryble Brothers," of Dickens, I am 
under special obligations for their polite hospi- 
talities. To Mr. Kirkpatrick, who occupies the 
Burns farm at Ellisland, seven miles out, and who 
called to take me to his place in order that he 
might " gie me a Hieland welcome," and to the 
members of the " Banquet Committee," who held a 
special meeting and voted me a ticket (after having 
" refused applications for hundreds,") because I had 
" come all the way from America," I also wish to 
convey my grateful acknowledgments. And thus 
with a general feeling of gratitude toward all 
creation, especially for the peculiar privileges and 
pleasures of this day, I will close my nodding letter 
and my weary eyelids. 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 75 



A Visit to Abbotsford. 

Under the Weather — " All full inside " — A sorrowful Companion — 
Edinburgh — A Live Directory — The Scott Monument — Rare 
Autographs — Madeleine Smith — Abbotsford — Its Relics and 
Venerable Cicerone — A Drive with a Butcher — Melrose Abbey. 

Waterloo Hotel, Edinburgh, Scotland, 

February, 1859. 

The distance from Dumfries to Edinburgh is 
about seventy miles, the first eighteen being done 
by horse power. On the morning after the celebra- 
tion, I ordered a servant in the hotel to " book " 
me for an inside first-class seat ; but on presenting 
myself at the " Booking Office," at 2 o'clock, the 
hour of departure, I was coolly informed that the 
coach was full, inside and out, and that I could not 
go on for any consideration. And so, there was no 
alternative but to return to my hotel and remain in 
Dumfries twenty-four hours longer than I had 
intended. I improved the time, however, by being 
sick — a regular Western chill having seized and 
shaken me, imtil the little windows of the old hotel 
(which was once occupied by Prince Charles 



70 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OK, 

Edward, the Pretender), fairly rattled. Hot baths, 
hot sheets, and cold napkins, applied to the head by 
a gentle and devoted nurse, soon brought me to my 
feet again ; and on the succeeding day I got the 
landlord to attend to the " booking " business him- 
self. It struck me as a little singular, that a 
Company who advertise to carry passengers to 
Edinburgh, should not provide means of taking to 
the railway station all who apply for tickets. In 
America, the public would hardly submit to such a 
restriction. One would as soon expect to be told 
that the mail-bag was "full," and his letter couldn't 
go, as to be told that there was no more room for 
him in or on the coach ; and that, however urgent 
his business or his wishes, he must " lie over " till 
the next day. 

In driving out of Dumfries, just as the carriage 
left the pavements, a well dressed woman sitting 
opposite to me burst into a torrent of tears ; and 
before reaching the station the wretched creature 
must have wept her shawl full, for she used no 
handkerchief. It made a sad and silent party of us 
all to witness such an overflow of a breaking heart ; 
and the mind of every passenger seemed occupied 
in privately speculating upon the cause of her irre- 
pressible sorrow. An utter stranger to us all, no 
one dared to intrude upon the sanctity of her grief; 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. ^7 

and yet, wlio would not have deemed it the highest 
possible happiness to have spoken the word of com- 
fort to that troubled soul ! There is nothing that 
affords more exquisite pleasure than the relief of 
human suffering. And yet, how seldom the best of 
us venture to indulge in the heavenly luxury ! At 
the station our sorrowful companion leaves us. 
Her weeping form is lost in the dark and rainy 
night ; and yet my thoughts linger with that lone 
woman, in spite of all the varied attractions of the 
brilliant city before me. And it is not until 
"within a mile of Edinboro' town," when the sweet 
face of a fair lady in Washington (who sang this 
song to me so encliantingly but a few days ago) 
rises before the eyes of my memory, that I can 
cease to wonder whether it is death, or separation, 
or sudden poverty, or, worse than all, the finding 
of unkindness where love was looked for, which had 
caused this deluge of heart-rain that had so sadly 
overwhelmed us. 

But yonder is the far-famed city of Edinburgh, 
whose lights seem to twinkle among the stars, 
affording a brilliant illustration of the Scripture : 
" A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid." 
There is the grim old Castle; yonder is Calton 
Hill ; and Salisbury Crags and Arthur's Seat rise 
gloomily and majestically in the background. The 



18 SPARKS FKOM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OK, 

train stops in a magnificent station ; and in less 
than -Q.YG minutes I am flying throngla the very 
" Heart of Mid-Lothian," trying to forget the clas- 
sic associations of the place ; and to be mindful only 
of what I most needed — a supper, a bath, and a 
bed at the " Waterloo:' 

As I am not writing a guide-book, I shall not 
undertake to describe the w^ild and novel scenery 
of this most picturesque of cities ; nor the quaint 
antiquities which meet the eye at every turn. 
After running up to the top of Calton Hill, the view 
from which makes one hold his breath ; and visiting 
"Kelson's Monument," which has been not inaptly 
compared to a " Dutch churn," the " Bums Monu- 
ment," a tasteful granite structure, just now hung 
with festive wreaths, etc., etc., I returned to the 
" Waterloo," and ordered a cab with a driver well 
posted in the localities. I found him a living 
directory, who knew every spot of historical in- 
terest, and who could recite the legends of the place 
with a fluency and a brogue almost incomprehen- 
sible. He took me to Holyrood Palace^ where 
Queen Mary was married to Darnley in 1565 ; and 
where her bed-room and cabinet are still shown, in 
the condition in which she left them, with the stains 
of Eizzio's blood on the floor ! Behind the Palace, 
the famous hill known as Arthur's Seat rises to a 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUKGPE. 79 

height of 822 feet above the level of the sea ; and 
from the road winding around it, called the 
" Queen's Drive," may be seen the cottage of 
"Davie Dean," familiar to the readers of Scott's 
" Heart of Mid-Lothian." 

We drive past the " Ahhey^^ a sort of " city of 
refuge," within whose sacred precincts the person 
of the poor debtor is safe from arrest, pass the Old 
Tolbooth prison, whose cells have been the scenes 
of so many horrors; through the Canongate, in 
which every mossy old mansion seems about to 
topple down, and pause reverently before the vener- 
able house of John Knox, which the Corporation ot 
the City carefully preserve from falling, without dis- 
guising the antiquity of its appearance. In the 
grey Old Castle (which looks as ancient as the rock 
on which it is built, and whose very stones look 
weary of remaining so long piled one upon another), 
we are shown Queen Mary's prison, in which she 
gave birth to James YI., the Eegalia Eoom, con- 
taining Bruce's crown and sceptre, etc., etc. The 
view from the Castle is beautiful beyond descrip- 
tion. We look down upon both the old and the 
new portions of the city, connected by beautiful 
bridges, with streets running under them, and take 
in at a glance more monuments and splendid build- 
ings than I have time to describe, or even to men- 



80 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIV-E ; OR, 

tion. But, among them all, none has impressed me 
so pleasantly as the Monument to Sir Walter Scott. 
This exquisite inspiration of art has afforded me a 
new sensation. It leaps into the air like a flame, 
and lifts the imagination up with it. The form is a 
gothic pyramid, two hundred feet high, designed 
by Kemp, a self-taught architect, and it covers, like 
a pointed cap, a colossal statue, in a sitting posture, 
of the King of l!^ovelists. The likeness is admir- 
able, and the expression indicates all the noble 
attributes of genius so happily blended in the char- 
acter and in the creations of Scott. It is a pleasant 
fact to record that the last £1,600 required for the 
completion of the Scott Monument was raised by 
the efforts of the greatest living poet of Scotland- 
Charles Mackay — who, when the work halted for 
the lack of the above-named sum, addressed letters 
to all the leading authors in Great Britain, soliciting 
funds for the purpose ; and soon succeeded in raising 
the amount. The letters received by Dr. Mackay in 
answer to his appeal, have been carefully preserved 
by him in a book, which is one of the rarest 
volumes of autographs I have ever seen. The reply 
of Sir E. Bulwer Lytton is particularly spicy. 

But I have no time to linger around monu- 
ments, however beautiful the structures, or thrilling 
the associationb. > Drive on, to the College of Jus- 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 81 

tice in Parliament Square, and gaze mutely and 
intently at tlie venerable old pile. And wliat 
Bays my red-haired guide ? ISTotliing of Jeffrey, of 
Blair, of Forbes, of Dundas, or of Melville ; but — 
" there, sir, is where Madeline Smith had her nine 
days' trial !" In this little modern tragedy all the 
ancient gloom and glory of the place is forgotten. 
But I confess that the mention of the fact gave a 
new interest to these ancient Halls. I had read 
every word of that famous trial ; and had fully ac- 
quitted the fair and beautiful prisoner of murder ; 
for if she did not kill the contemptible villain who 
threatened to murder her refutations by proclaim- 
ing his own shameful triumph over her frailty, she 
hardly did her duty to herself or to her sex. Made- 
line Smith, it is reported, has left Scotland; 
but whether she seeks oblivion of the past in the 
wilds of Australia or America, rumor seems to be 
undecided. The Dean of Faculty, who so ably de- 
fended her, expresses the strongest conviction of his 
client's innocence ; and so strong was the feeling in 
her favor, that had she been convicted, the chivalry 
of the nation would have interposed between her 
slender neck and the gallows. 

Time flies, and Abbotsford, forty miles off, must 
be ^' done" to-day. At 11 o'clock the train starts. 
The morning had been clear and cold. But now 
4* 



82 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OR, 

tliick clouds come flying over the Eildon Hills ; and 
tlie rain begins to pour. The Braes of Yarrow are 
white with snow ; and the swollen streams on every 
hand are rnshing into the Tweed. On arriving at 
Abbotsford ferry, the old man at the station says — 
" the stream is sae high, ye canna cross ; ye'd bet- 
ter gang to the neist Station" — and so I "ganged" 
about three miles further on — only to fare worse. 
'No veliicle could be had ; and the cold rain — ^that 
had a very narrow escape from being frozen in the 
air — came down in streams. It was three miles to 
Abbotsford ; and I was not in good condition for 
the walk, not even properly booted. But I had 
come too far to be baffled ; and my enthusiasm 
would not allow me to retreat ; although still re- 
membering in every bone, the Dumfries " chill ;" 
and recollecting the word " consequences," of which 
a certain prudent little lady so often has to remind 
me, yet I borrowed an umbrella, and started off on 
a trot. The rain, and mud, and wind, gave me a 
vivid understanding of Burns' " Lang Scots miles." 
The road wound along the banks of the Tweed ; and, 
ending at what I took for the " Lodge," I rang the 
bell, and asked for Abbotsford. A grey-haired man 
came to the door, and informed me that I had still 
another mile to walk. On learning that I was from 
America, his face suddenly brightened ; and he be- 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 83 

gan to make eager inquiries after friends in " the 
States," and seemed both disappointed and dis- 
pleased that I did not know anything about his 
"particular friend, Mr. Porter, doing business in 
Pine street !" Splashing on through the " Abbots- 
ford "Woods," I find the right entrance at last, when 
suddenly, the stately and beautiful palace of genius 
rises before me like an enchanted castle. It is a 
perfect romance in Architecture, a Waverley novel 
done in freestone ! But the Gothic picture is 
familiar to all eyes ; and no pen-sketch can equal 
the numerous engravings of it that are scattered 
over every land'. The building is about one hun- 
dred and fifty feet in length; and the grounds 
around are handsomely laid out and highly culti- 
vated. In front, it overlooks the wimpling Tweed ; 
and beyond are the gentle Ettrick Hills, so famous 
for their fleecy flocks. The surrounding scenery is 
peaceful, pastoral, beautiful ; in perfect harmony 
with that state of mental serenity so welcome in 
the ripe autumn of life to the " Indian summer of 
the soul." The interior of Abbotsford is a museum 
of the rarest interest. The place is shown to visit- 
ors by Mr. John Swinston, an old man, seventy 
years of age, who has lived forty-three years in Sir 
Walter's family. He took me first to the " study," 
and invited me to sit in the large, leather-lined arm- 



84: SPAEKS FROM. A LOCOMOTIVE ; OK, 

chair of the great " Wizard of the ITorth." A very 
easy chair, indeed, it is ; hut who on earth can fill 
it! In a little room opening ont of the study, 
neatly folded in a glass case, is the last suit of 
clothes worn by Sir Walter; the dark-blue coat, 
checked pants, striped vest, and large, well-worn 
white fur hat. The study walls are lined with 
books ; and the writing-table occupies the centre of 
the room. Passing into the library, one feels that 
he is entering some public institution, so extensive 
is the array of books. The volumes are elegantly 
arranged, and protected by a brass wire netting. 
On one side of the library there is a full-length por- 
trait of Sir Walter's only son, who is dressed in the 
uniform of a colonel, and represented as leaning 
against his horse. It is a remarkably handsome 
picture, and was taken, I believe, when Col. Scott 
was but nineteen years old. He died at the age of 
forty, oif the Cape of Good Hope, on his way home 
from India. 

In the central Library window, there stands a 
round table, covered with glass, containing the 
gems of Abbotsford. They are mostly presents to 
Sir Walter, many of them from kings and emperors, 
the intrinsic value of which would build another 
Abbotsford. I cannot enumerate the costly gifts 
and curious relics in this wonderful collection. 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 85 

There is a magnificent portfolio, in green and gold, 
which was taken from ]^apoleon at "Waterloo ; and 
by its side, a silver scent-bottle that belonged to 
Mary Queen of Scots. There are also snuff-boxes, 
and daggers, and drinking-cups innumerable ; and, 
amidst them all, towers a plain glass tumbler — ^the 
whisky goblet of Eobert Burns. Then there is a 
room filled with muskets, pistols, spears and lances ; 
another with armor of every description. Some of 
the suits kept brightly polished ; and in the draw- 
ing-room there are the elegant ebony cabinet and 
chairs presented by George lY. ; with various 
quaint articles. Tlie walls are covered with family 
portraits, including many of the ancestors as well 
as the entire posterity of Sir Walter. A fine paint- 
ing of Lady Scott, in her youthful days, represents 
her as a very handsome woman ; and the portraits 
of Mrs. Lockhart, and Miss Scott, the two daughters, 
both deceased, are also very pleasing pictures. And 
there, too, is a capital painting of the Master's 
favorite hound ; while a fine statue of the same 
" faithful animal " stands before the door in stone. 
But the day wanes, and I must run. " This," says 
the venerable Swinston, " is the heendmost room ;" 
so, spreading my umbrella for a three-mile walk to 
Melrose, I took a respectful farewell of Abbotsford 
— a place that already ranks among 



86 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OR, 

" the Pilgrim shrines, the Delphian vales, 

The Meccas of the mind." 

Brief as my visit was, I wonld attempt a more 
minute description, liad not Washington Irving, tlie 
best-loved American in England, been bere before 
me. But, before the last living chronicle of Abbots- 
ford shall pass away, some one should visit the 
place, pen in hand, for the purpose of writing out a 
descriptive catalogue of the pictures, the presents, 
and the relics it contains. Many curious articles 
here have a history, which will die with Swinston — 
whose descriptions and reminiscences would make a 
most interesting volume. The present proprietor, 
Mr. Hope Scott, who married Miss Locldiart (and 
who took the name of Scott after marriage), resides 
in London. His wife is dead ; and his little 
daughter, seven years old, is the only descendant 
of Sir "Walter. In contemplating this beautiful 
estate of fifteen hundred acres, with its magnificent 
mansion, containing so many rich and rare gems of 
antiquity and art, one cannot but remember, with a 
feeling of sad regret, the painful embarrassments 
which clouded the closing days of SirWalter in strug- 
gling to complete his ideal home. The demon, debt, 
was the skeleton at his Abbotsford feast ; ^and yet, 
scarcely was his great heart cold in the tomb, before 
millions were ready to be expended in his monument! 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 87 

My walk to Melrose was more than romantic. It 
partook of the tragico-comic. The cold flood came 
down in sheets ; and the wind had risen to a gale. 
I was obliged to reef top-sail ; and, I was going to 
say, scud under a hare jpole ', but a little Scotch cap 
on the top of my head just served to strain the 
water^ and allow it to percolate and penetrate in 
the finest possible form. But, under the double in- 
spiration of Abbotsford behind me, and old Melrose 
before me, I panted on, spouting " Marmion " for 
the sake of company. Coming in sight of a toll- 
gate, an object one is seldom particularly glad to 
see, like St. Paul, when he came in sight of the 
" three taverns," I thanked God and took courage ; 
for there I espied a butcher's cart, with a restive 
little white pony, dripping in the rain. I found the 
owner thereof hob-nobbing with the toll-keeper's 
pretty wife, and asked him to drive me to Melrose 
Abbey. The sight of the " siller " seemed to glad- 
den his eye ; and put " life and mettle in the heels " 
of the little pony. We " skelpit on through mud 
and mire," at a racking rate ; and thus, triumph- 
antly, I rode into Melrose; finding the butcher's 
cart, in my weary plight, more luxurious than a 
Spanish volante. 

"Melrose Abbey " must be " done " before dark; 
and the daylight is already dim. So I hurried out 



88 SPARKS FKOM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OR, 

the keeper ; and, passing under the old arch-way, 
stood upon the grassy floor of the roofless, temple. 
My venerable guide led me from point to point, 
pausing before the various mortuary and biblical 
inscriptions, which he declaimed in true Ciceronian 
style, with his eyes raised to heaven, or rather to 
the roof of his umbrella. Pausing at a flat stone, 
not over a foot square, lying on the ground, he said 
with solemn, almost startling emphasis : " Beneath 

THIS STONE LIES THE HEART OF EoBERT BrFCE !" 

Gathering a few leaves of ivy that came clamber- 
ing over the wall, to send home as leaves of remem- 
brance, I was glad to exchange the romance of the 
Abbey, and the pitiless pelting of the rain, for a 
blazing fire and a cup of tea at the little railway 
inn. After being " wrung out and dried " for two 
hours, I took the train for Edinburgh, whose wel- 
come lights again twinkled pleasantly ; and whose 
excellent hotel, after the day's weariness, seemed 
like a paradise regained. 

To-morrow, I am off for " famous London town," 
four hundred miles distant, where I mean to see 
dear little Grandmother Yictoria " open the Parlia- 
ment in person." 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 89 



The Great Metropolis. 

The Approach by Night — Immortal Memories — ^From Edinburgh 
to London — Berwick — ^Newcastle — York — Morley's Hotel — A 
Heart-Luxury — The Handsome Thing — ^Mr. Dallas and Nautilus 
Hallett— The Foreign Office — Opening of ParHament — The Queen 
— A Beautiful Kevelation — ^Prince Albert — Lord Derby — The 
Duke of Cambridge — Rosy Peeresses — The Duchess of Malakoff 
— England and Mexico. 

Morlet's Hotel, London, 

February, 1859. 

And this is London — the " Great Metropolis of 
the World !" Like the ocean, it is too vast for com- 
prehension — ^too bewildering for description. I 
approached the great Imnian ant-hill at 10 o'clock 
in the evening, bj railway from Edinburgh. The 
multitudinous lamps twinkled along the horizon, as 
far as the eye could see, like the nebulous stars in 
the " milky way," mingling into a sort of fixed 
aurora ; or, as Tennyson pictures it to the hero of 
" Locksley Hall " (generally believed to be himself) : 

" And at night along the dusky highway, near and nearer drawn, 
Sees in heaven the light of London flaring like a dreary dawn." 



90 SPARES FEOM A LOCOMOTIVE; OR, 

But it was not the immensity of the city, with its 
two and a half millions of human beings, that 
most impressed me on finding myself in the streets 
of London. It was the recollection of Shakspeare 
and Sheridan ; of Milton and Mansfield ; of Gold- 
smith and Garrick ; and of the innumerable cata- 
logue of immortal names that rushed with electric 
swiftness across the keys of memory, which made 
London seem like consecrated, almost enchanted 
ground ; and my first drive into its " very heart," a 
dreamy delirium of delight. 

But, in the first place, a few words touching the 
journey hither. The train left Edinburgh at ten 
minutes before ten, in the morning, and arrived at 
the King's Cross Station a little before ten in the 
evening — distance, four hundred miles ; fare £4 7s. 
or, $21 Y5, first class carriage. The day was 
delightful, mild and clear ; and I had the good for- 
tune to find, in my only companion in the carriage, 
a very agreeable and accomplished young gentle- 
man, Mr. Koss, son of a late Member of Parliament 
from Scotland, and well known to many American 
travellers in Europe. The road runs for some 
twenty or thirty miles near the margin of the sea, 
with beautiful farms on each side, cultivated like 
gardens. Li the meadows the grass was as green 
as a New England May, and the farmers were 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUKOPE. 91 

engaged in ploughing, always working fine looking 
horses, sometimes two abreast; sometimes two, 
or three, or four tandem. The fuiTows are as 
straight as the " ruling " of a copy-book ; and the 
soil is generally of a reddish hue, everywhere indi- 
cating the sandstone formation. [Query: Does 
this peculiar complexion of the soil account for the 
prevailing sandy colored hair of Scotsmen ?] "We 
pass the "Wolf's Crag," belonging once to the mas- 
ter of Ravenswood, in the "Bride of Lammermoor ;" 
Halidon Hill, where the Scotch were defeated by 
Edward III., and there is old Norham, with its 
ancient border castle : 

" Day sets on Norham\ castled steep, 
On Tweed's fair river, broad and deep, 
And Cheviot's mountains lone. 

Had the author of " Marmion " ever seen the 
mighty rivers of America, he would hardly have 
described the little Tweed as " broad and deep." 

Berwick, (or JBerrick^ as they call it here,) lies 
between England and Scotland, and belongs to 
neither, having been made an " independency " by 
Henry YIH. It contains only about 20,000 inhabi- 
tants, and yet it sends two members to Parliament. 
In historical reminiscences, the place is somewhat 
famous. It was here that Edward I. crowned his 



92 SPARKS FKOM A LOCOMOTIVE; OR, 

servant Balliol, and barbarously exposed the limbs 
of the patriot Wallace, after his execution. And 
here, too, the celebrated Countess of Buchan was 
confined in a wicker cage and tortured for six 
years. Stephenson's Royal Eailway bridge over 
the Tweed is a splendid piece of engineering. It is 
216 feet long, on twenty-eight brick arches, 61 feet 
span. 

U^ewcastle-upon-Tyne, with a population of 
nearly 100,000, is famous for its collieries, and its 
" Eoman remains," for here was the Pons jEUi of 
Hadrian. The coal mines, which were discovered 
in 1260, and which have been worked by steam 
since 1714, are said to be inexhaustible. They are 
estimated to cover five hundred square miles, and 
have been worked to the depth of eighteen hundred 
feet! Of the three million tons of coal annually 
sent to London, over one million goes from I^ew- 
castle. 

We dine at York, a city world-famous for its 
Minster, of which the railway affords us but a pass- 
ing glimpse. Old as it is, York contains but about 
60,000 inhabitants. It was the " head-quarters" of 
Agricola, seventy years before Christ; here the 
Emperor Severus died ; here Constantine, the first 
Christian emperor, was born ; and here Paulinus 
built the first Christian church in the north of Ens:- 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 93 

land. Here, too, is Micklegate, upon whose bloody 
battlements tlie head of Eichard, Duke of York, 
and that of his son Rutland, a boy of nineteen, were 
placed after the battle of Wakefield ; Queen Mar- 
garet says, in the play of Henry YI. : 

" Off with his head, and set it on York gates, 
So York may overlook the town of York." 

I was sorry to leave the Cathedral unyisited ; but 
consoled myself with the hope of making a special 
pilgrimage to the place on some future day. The 
^'lightning express" speeds on, dashing through 
Leeds, Doncaster, Sheffield, Derby, Newark, Eugby; 
and before one has time to think of the specialties 
of these well-known places, the conductor announces 
— London ! I could only remember that Leeds is 
famous for its cloths ; and for its excellent news- 
paper, the " Mercury," established more than a cen- 
tury and a quarter ago ; that Sheffield supplies the 
world with its cutlery ; and there the poet Mont- 
gomery lived and lies buried : 

" Grave, the guardian of his dust; 
Grave, the treasury of the skies ; 
Every atom of thy trust, 

Rests in hope again to rise !" 

Derby, we remember for its silk-mills, and as the 



94 SPAIiKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OE, 

birthplace of Ricliardson, the novelist ; Newark, 
for its picturesque old castle and its extensive brew- 
eries ; and Eugby, for its famous school. In the 
mere mention of these ancient historical towns, the 
reader will readily imagine that one's memory in 
flying through them, will be too busy for the way 
to seem long between the capitals of Scotland and 
England. The panorama of two thousand yeai's 
has flashed before the mind's eye in these brief 
twelve hours ; and we reach London mentally fa- 
tigued by the exciting associations of the journey. 
At " Morley's," in Trafalgar Square, a very nice 
hotel (for England), much frequented by Ameri- 
cans of the better class, I find a pleasant room and 
pleasanter letters awaiting my arrival. After indulg- 
ing freely in the three great luxuries of life — black 
tea, a bath, and a bed — I woke up to the unexpected 
pleasure of a clear and beautiful morning. ]^o fog, 
no clouds ; and not smoke enough to veil the bright- 
ness of the sun. A walk down the Strand to the 
office of "The Illustrated London ITews," and 
there a precious pile of letters from the unforget- 
ting and unforgotten ones at home, makes the day 
look lovelier still, and London a thousand times 
more attractive. Blessings on the man who in- 
vented "letters" — those dear little messengers 
which carry sweet and secret tidings from lieart to 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 95 

heart ; " wafting a sigh from Indus to the Pole ;" and 

" Flying, like flower-seeds on the breeze, 
To sow the world with love !" 

How we read them ; devour them ; and read them 
again and again ; even after every word is commit- 
ted to memory ! Ah, can that be a place of bliss- 
ful rest, where no precious assurances of remem- 
brance can come to us from home ! 

" To live in hearts we leave behind, 
Is not to die ;" 

■ — ^but how shall we know it, when beyond the reach 
of letters ! 

- The delivery of "cards of introduction" is the 
first thing in order ; and so, after preparing a list 
like a catalogue of " E"ew Year's Calls," I order a 
"Hansom," and start out to do the "handsome 
thing." The distances are truly magnificent ; and, 
between such extremes as Peabody's Banking 
House in " the city," and Lord Bury's mansion in 
" Belgravia," one begins to get some idea of the 
immensity of the town ; but it is not until after 
driving through a continuous, compact street, or 
series of streets, to the distance of sixteen miles, 
that we have a " realizing sense" of the expansive 
limits of London. My programme took me to the 



96 SPARES FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OK, 

residence of the American minister in Portland 
Place — a very plain but respectable looking man- 
sion, where I found Mr. Dallas in excellent health 
and spirits, although evidently annoyed by the 
statements in some of the newspapers, in which his 
name is mixed up with that of I^autilus Hallett, 
whose recent remarkable financiering operations in 
Europe have called forth some severe comments. 
Mr. Dallas is indignant at the charge of his being 
" a speculator." He says he " has never given a 
note in his life ;" and never " speculated to the 
amount of a single dollar." He endeavors to ren- 
der all the service he can to the Americans who call 
upon him ; and, as about nine out of every ten have 
an " axe to grind" — from a patent churn to a grand 
railway scheme — ^Mr. Dallas sometimes finds it difii- 
cult to avoid seeming to befriend some swindling 
adventurer. 

At the British Foreign Office, and at the Colo- 
nial Office, the Secretaries — the Earl of Malmsbury, 
and Sir Edward Bulwer Lytton — to whom I had 
letters, were not in — ^half-past 12 o'clock. The 
queen was to open Parliament the following day ; 
and " Her Majesty's Ministers " were much engaged 
in Cabinet meetings. To witness the spectacle of 
the " Opening " was the principal motive that had 
hurried me up to London ; and, on arriving, I found 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUKOPE. 97 

that all admission tickets had been disposed of for 
several days. Eiit my friends went to work in my 
behalf; and several gentlemen in influential posi- 
tions made personal application to the Lord Grand 
Chamberlain for " one more ticket." It was in 
vain ; his lordship addressed me a very polite note 
expressing his "extreme regret." Mr. Moran, 
the gentlemanly and obliging Assistant Secretary 
of the American Legation, also exerted himself 
without success. But there was still a power which 
had not been appealed to ; a power " mightier than 
the sword," a power which no popular government 
can afford to disregard — the power of the press. A 
line from Herbert Ligram, Esq., M.P., the pro- 
prietor of " The Illustrated London l^ews," carried 
me through the long line of policemen, door- 
keepers, and other officials, into the '' Reporter's 
Gallery " of the House of Lords — the very best pos- 
sible position for witnessing the august spectacle. 
And what a pageant of splendor and of grandeur 
was here presented! The floor of the house was 
packed with the wives and daughters and sisters of 
the peers, in full dress, leaving only a narrow space 
in the centre which was occupied by peers and 
bishops in their brilliant scarlet robes. The entire 
gallery which surrounds the House was filled with 
a row of elegantly-dressed ladies, only broken by a 



98 SPAEKS FEOM A LOCOMOTI\rE ; OB, 

line of reporters, occnpjing seats directly opposite 
the throne. Behind the reporters, the benches, one 
rising above another, were filled with ladies. Pre- 
sently the trumpets sonnd— the signal that the 
queen is approaching. She leaves the palace in 
her magnificent state carriage, drawn bj eight 
cream-colored horses, attended by her ministers and 
household officers, in carriages but a little less 
sumptuous than her own; escorted by the Life 
Guard, all mounted on noble black horses; the 
whole cortege forming a mostjnagnificent spectacle. 
In alighting from the carriage, Her Majesty's foot 
presses an electric wire, which fires a cannon in the 
Park. The Usher of the Golden Pod gives a sig- 
nal; and, suddenly, every lady in the House 
throws off her opera cloak, or shawl, or mantle ; and 
a more beautiful revelation can hardly be imagined ; 
surely not described. 

Flashed all their arms in air; 
Flashed all their bosoms bare, 
Stunning the gazers there — 
Lovely six hundred! 

The officers of the court enter, and, bowing be- 
fore the throne, arrange themselves on either side ; 
the Prime Minister, Lord Derby, standing on the 
left, presenting the Sword of State. 'Now there is 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 99 

a rising all over tlie House, but so quietly that only 
a slight rustle of dresses is heard. The queen en- 
ters, arrayed in her most royal robes, with a glitter- 
ing tiara of diamonds on her head ; while the Crown 
\ of England is borne on a velvet cushion behind her. 
She ascends the throne, which looks like a great 
golden chair, elevated three or four steps ; and, as 
soon as the two maids of honor have adjusted her 
long train of crimson velvet, takes her seat, looking 
every inch a queen. Another gentle silken sound, 
and everybody is seated, while the silence is pro- 
found. Ten minutes elapse in waiting for the mem- 
bers of the House of Commons, who come tumbling 
in at the opposite end of the Hall, and as soon as 
silence is restored — and such silence I never before 
heard (for it is almost audible) — the queen took 
her speech from the hand of the Lord Chamberlain,- 
who stood by her side, and read it in a very delib- 
erate, distinct tone of voice — and, as Shakspeare 
says, " with good emphasis and discretion." ISTot a 
word was lost; and, when she had finished, she 
appeared to me ten times as majestical as before 
she began. Her voice is very pleasant, and her 
intonation showed that she understood and meant 
what she uttered. But it sounded odd to hear that 
little woman talk so supremely of her power, her 
authority, her army, her navy, her ministers, her 



100 SPAKKS FKOM A LOCOMOTIVE; OE, 

people, etc., etc. And yet there was a toucli of tlie 
" moral sublime " in the dramatic situation of the 
scene — in the palpable evidences of the surrounding 
" divinity v^hich doth hedge a queen^'^ Yictoria is 
rather a good-looking, pleasant faced vroman, her 
eye being her best feature. She is a little below 
the medium height, with a very full, but not dis- 
agreeably fat figure. Her movements are exceed- 
ingly graceful and dignified; and, although she 
gave no signs of recognition while seated on the 
throne, yet in passing out she bowed smilingly to 
her friends on either side. Prince Albert led her to 
and from the throne ; and during the ceremony, sat 
at a little distance on the queen's left. He appeared 
very stiif and stately ; and is not as good-lookiiig as 
artists have generally represented him. His head 
is quite bald, on the top, and his whole appearance 
indicates his subordinate position — reminding one of 
the severe satire of the French picture of " the Prince 
Consort in his Official Eobe "—his robe do nuit. 

The great men of England, who were present on 
the august occasion, did not particularly impress 
me as men of great personal dignity and power. 
I saw no head as massive as Webster's, as noble as 
Clay's, or as striking as Calhoun's. Among the 
peers, Lord Derby looked most like a leader ; but 
among the bishops, I saw no very marked evidences 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 101 

of divine or hum an " authority ;" and, as for the 
Duke of Cambridge, the military head of the army, 
no phrenologist would select him from a crowd as 
one " born to command." But the ladies of the 
nobility are decidedly better looking than their 
lords. I have never before seen so large a collec- 
tion of fine, fresh, rosy-looking women. The 
majority have fair complexions, blue eyes, exuberant 
busts and luxuriant heads of hair. On coming out 
of the House of Lords, the crowd was very great, and 
progress was very slow ; but it afforded a fine 
opportunity of a daylight look into the faces and 
eyes of the leading belles of England ; and although 
there was danger of being smothered in a crowd of 
peeresses, yet I suppose it would have been like the 
" dying of a rose in aromatic pain." In the diplo- 
matic benches, none of the Ministers were more 
conspicuous than Mr. Dallas in his plain black suit, 
and snow white hair; and the pompous looking 
Duke of Malakoff, with his iron-grey beard and jet 
black moustache. The Duchess of Malakoff, who 
was seated next the Duke of Cambridge, is not so 
painfully beautiful as I had imagined her to be, 
from newspaper reports. She would scarcely make 
a sensation in the Fifth Avenue. But of particular 
persons, I shall be able to speak more particularly 
when I have seen more of them. 



102 SPARKS FKOM A LOCOMOTIVE; OR, 

The Queen's Speech is generally regarded as a 
very careful and judicious manifesto. The parts 
read with the most emphasis were those relating to 
the increased efficiency of the l^avy, and the neces- 
sity of bringing Mexico up to the payment of her 
English debt. But from all I can gather from the 
leading statesmen and financiers of England, it is 
the wish of the Government that the United States 
should take possession of Mexico ; and, as a thing 
of course, assume the Mexican debt. And if Yera 
Cruz should be bombarded by a British fleet (an 
event not unlikely to occur), it will be simply for 
the purpose of driving Mexico into the Protectorate 
of the United States. But I forbear discussing 
questions which are just now filling the newspapers 
— the prospects of a European war ; the Eeform Bill 
before Parliament ; Mexico, Cuba, Spain, etc. etc., 
I will see something of life in London, high and 
low ; and, in these hastily-written letters, deal more 
in facts and observations than in theories and 
speculations. 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 103 



Hampton C ourt. 

The Magnificent Cardinal — Splendid Paintings — Nell Gwynn — Ben- 
jamin West — Heels and Soles for Dinner. 

"Morley's Hotel," London, 

February — , 1859. 

A DAY at Hampton Court is a day not to be forgot- 
ten. It is quite easy to recall the spacious outlines 
of the venerable Palace, with its numerous halls 
and chambers lined with paintings ; the beautiful 
grounds, with their long avenues of chestnut-trees 
and cedars of Lebanon ; the smoothly-rolled walks ; 
the frolicking fountains; the mazy gardens, with 
pleasant glimpses of the undefiled Thames. But it is 
not so easy to reproduce all these enchanting views 
" on paper," in lines that will convej a just impres- 
sion of the original pictures. 

Hampton Court is situated at a distance of about 
twelve miles west from London; or, rather from 
Hyde Park. It is reached by steamboat, or rail- 
way ; or, better than either, by one of the most 
delightful drives in England. The Palace is open 
to the public, free, every day in the week, except 



104 SPARKS FKOM A LOCOMOTIVE; OE, 

Friday, when it is closed for cleaning; and tlie 
attractions of the place draw a daily crowd of 
visitors. It was built, as all the world knows, by 
Cardinal Wolsey, a man of unbounded ambition, 
and most magnificent conception. His biography 
is best given by the Satirist, who sums him up in a 
single couplet : 

"Begot by Butchers, but by Bishops bred ; 
How high his Honor holds his haughty head." 

(Cockneys make sad work in reading that last 
line.) The building, begun in 1515, was not com- 
pleted until 1604, from designs by Sir Christopher 
Wren. Its sumptuous grandeur eclipsing the" 
palace of Henry YIII., excited the envy of the king, 
who questioned the Chancellor Cardinal on the 
meaning of his extravagance. "Sire," said the 
wily Wolsey, " I wished to erect a palace worthy 
of your majesty. It is yours." The king accepted 
the present ; but gave the Cardinal, in exchange for 
his munificence, not only the royal manor of Rich- 
mond, but the supreme power of England. 

Wolsey was decidedly a "fast man," with sub- 
limely expansive ideas. Had he lived in these days 
of steam and lightning, he would perhaps have been 
a "Eailroad King," a magnificent Filibuster, or, 
greater than either, a E'apoleon of the Press ! Born 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUKOPE. 105 

of "poor and honest parents" (as most great men 
are, if history can be relied on), in the year 1471, at 
Ipswich, in Suffolk, Thomas Wolsey graduated at 
Oxford at the tender age of fourteen years, and was 
known as " the boy Bachelor." He began his 
career by teaching school (like Daniel Webster and 
many other distinguished men) and achieved his 
first notoriety by getting drunk at a fair and being 
placed in the stocks. But when he became Lord 
Chancellor of England he paid the old knight who 
inflicted the punishment by confining him for six 
years in the Temple Prison. Wolsey managed the 
king by advising the sensual old monarch to do 
what was most agreeable to his inclinations; got 
possession of the Great Seal and governed England 
for twenty years without a parliament. He vainly 
aspired to the Papal Chair on the deaths of Leo X. 
and Adrian YI. ; fell mider the displeasure of the 
king in matters relating to his divorce from Queen 
Catherine ; w^as obliged to give up the Great Seal, 
and all his fortune ; was im]3eached by parliament, 
arrested for high treason and finally ended his bril- 
liant but most miserable life by taking poison to 
escape from the gallows. 

All this sounds a little too mnch like history for 
a rattling newspaper correspondence ; bnt one can^ 
not visit Hampton Court without awaking some 

5* 



106 SPAKKS FKOM A LOCOMOTIVE; OR, 

reminiscences of the splendors of the past, or with- 
out a flitting allnsion to the glorj and the gloom 
which alternately mantled and shrouded the most 
adroit and powerful of ministers ; the most corrupt 
and unscrupulous of prelates. 

The Palace is filled with paintings, which would 
require a volume to describe. "We ascend the 
"King's Grand Stair-case," and pass successively 
through the " Guard Chamber," the " King's First 
Presence Chamber," the " Second Presence Cham- 
ber," the " Audience Chamber," the " King's Draw- 
ing Room," the " Bed Room of King William III.," 
the " King's Dressing Room," the " King's Writing 
Closet," " Queen Mary's Closet," " Her Majesty's 
Gallery," the " Queen's Bed Room," the '' Queen's 
Drawing Room," the " Queen's Audience Cham- 
ber," the " Public Dining Room," the " Prince of 
Wales' Presence Chamber," the " Prince of Wales' 
Drawing Room," the " Prince of Wales' Bed 
Room," the " Ante Room," the " Queen's Private 
Chapel," the " Private Dining Room," the " Queen's 
Private Chamber," the " King's Private Drawing 
Room," the " Portrait Gallery," the " Queen's 
Grand Chamber," the " Queen's Presence Cham- 
ber," the "Withdrawing Room," the " Great Hall," 
etc., etc., etc. Each and all of these apartments are 
ilUed with paintings mostly by the Old Masters ; and 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 107 

many of them of world-wide celebrity. Among the 
most famous are the seven Cartoons of Eaphael, re- 
presenting Scriptural scenes, and presented by Pope 
Leo X. to the king. There are also many master- 
pieces by Guido, Titian, Giorgione, Correggio, Te- 
niers, Yandyck, Tintoretto, Leonardo da Yinci, Hol- 
bein, Paul Yeronese, Romano, Picci, etc., etc. 
But the room in which I lingered longest and left 
most reluctantly, was the one principally devoted 
to Sir Peter Lely's beauties of the Court of Charles. 
His women surpass anything I have ever seen on 
canvas ; and his Nell Gwynn (as the Duchess of St. 
Albans, bearing a remarkable resemblance to the 

beautiful Mrs. L , of ISTew York), haunts me like 

a dream. There is a light in her eye ; a sweetness 
in her lip ; a smile on her face ; and a fountain of 
inspiration in her fair, full bosom, to melt the iron 
heart of an anchorite. I have never seen but one 
lovelier vision, and tJiat^ blessed be the Divine Art- 
ist, is a breathing, living, loving " statue of flesh !" 
The paintings of Benjamin West, which occupy 
one entire room, have given me a much higher 
opinion of that artist's merits, than I had formed 
from the few unfavorable specimens of his works in 
the LTnited States. ]^o American can see "West's 
great pictures — ^the " Death of Wolfe," the " Death 
of Epaminondas," the "Death of Bayard," the 



108 SPARKS FEOM A LOCOMOTIVE; OK, 

"Oath of Hannibal," "Peter denying Christ," 
" Queen Charlotte and her Thirteen Children," 
without feeling a glow of pride in calling the artist 
a countryman. It is disgraceful to j)un on a name, 
but these splendid works give one a new love for 
the great West. I cannot pause even before these 
soft Murillos^ these bold Bassanos, these sumptuous 
KnelUfs^ these rich Bomanos^ and delicately-tinted 
Tintorettos. The day wanes. Time flies fastest 
when we are feasting highest. A dinner awaits us 
at the " Mitre ;" and the Train will not wait even 
for the pleasantest train of reflections. Some readers 
may perhaps wish to know something of the pre- 
sent condition and occupancy of Hampton Court 
Palace. It is no longer the residence or resort of 
royalty. George II. was the last monarch who held 
his Court here ; and although the palace is kept in 
excellent condition, yet Victoria prefers the "mo- 
dern improvements" of Windsor to the antiquated 
magnificence of Hampton. But its numerous 
apartments are not all empty. The widows of dis- 
tinguished heroes, comfortably pensioned by the 
government, here reside in a sort of regal retire- 
ment ; and, bound together by a common sympa- 
thy, form among themselves a society of peculiar 
dignity and refinement. Their rooms are nicely 
furnished ; every view from the window is a pic- 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 109 

ture ; every walk througli the gallery, or gardens, 
is an inspiration ; every memory of the Past is like 
a battle hymn of glory. Over all the archways are 
busts of Roman emperors ; while the portraits of 
kings, and queens, and saints, and heroes look ma- 
jestically down upon us at every turn. Here Ed- 
ward YI. was born; and here his mother, Jane 
Seymour, died almost in the same hour ; here the 
ravenous Henry married and murdered his beauti- 
ful wives; and here, in "gloomy retirement," 
Philip of Spain and Mary passed their honeymoon. 
Here that heartless spinster, Elizabeth, held her 
grand Christmas festivals ; here, in the great dining 
Hall, was first performed Shakspeare's play of Henry 
YHI. ; and here Iving James began his conferences 
with the bishops, which led to the new translation 
of the Bible. Here Charles I. and his queen, Hen- 
rietta, iled from the raging "plague" in 1625 ; and 
here, twenty years afterward, he was held in splen- 
did imprisonment, until he escaped to the Isle of 
"Wight on his way to — the Scaffold ! 

We had an 'excellent dinner at the "Mitre;" 
although my appetite was a little upset by the land- 
lord — who, on being asked what kind of fish he 
could give us, replied : " Heels and Soles, sir." But 
the " Soles " were delicious, and the " Jieels^'' 
which I never touch, on account of their resem- 



110 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OR, 

blance to snakes, were pronounced by my friends 
to be equally fine. A few minutes, and we are 
back to town, with memories overlaid with pictures 
which, if the mind is immortal, can never be utterly 
effaced. Reserving other "sights" for future let- 
ters, I will close this with the benevolent wish that 
each of my hundred thousand readers may live to 
pass a pleasant day at Ham/pton Court ; and bring 
away as many interesting reminiscences as I have 
endeavored, in this hasty communication, to sug- 
gest. 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUEOPE. Ill 



The Great Eastern. 

A Leviathan among Minnows — Herbert Ingram — Captain Harrison 
— The first Steamboat — ^William Symington — Robert Fulton — 
Betting on the Great Ship's speed— A Fish Dinner at Greenwich. 

Moeley's Hotel, London, 

February, 1859. 

The " Gkeat Eastern !" I have seen her, the archi- 
tectural wonder! the mechanical monster of the 
age ! and wandered for hours over her prairie-like 
decks, and through her mammoth cave-like com- 
partments. But her "vasty" dimensions baffle 
description. Like the Falls of I^iagara, neither 
words nor pictures can do justice to the subject. 
"We can only give a few figures of fact, and a few 
figures of rhetoric, and leave the imagination to 
conceive and elaborate the sublime idea as best it 
may. Comparisons may possibly help us a little in 
attempting to convey some adequate estimate of 
size and power. The largest ships of the line lying 
alongside the Great Eastern, look like children's 
toys. She seems like a continent among islands : 
a leviathan among minnows ; a pyramid among 



112 SPAKKS FKGM A LOCOMOTIVE; OE, 

pins. She is more than an eighth of a mile long^ 
and over twelve thousand tons of iron have been 
used in her construction. Bnt will she ever be fin- 
ished, and when? And what then? These are 
questions which everybody is asking, and these I 
propose to answer, so far as I have been able to 
gain information ; and, fortunately, I have had an 
admirable opportunity for consulting " the authori- 
ties." 

The ship is now lying at Blackwail, opposite 
Greenwich, lengthwise in the Thames, in the spot 
where she was anchored on the day of launching. 
She is not open to public inspection ; but Mr. Her- 
bert Ingram, M.P., the proprietor of "The Illus- 
trated London News," who is one of the most active 
directors in the new Great Eastern Company, 
kindly proposed a visit to the ship, and made up a 
pleasant party for the purpose. We found Captain 
Harrison on board, who has lived in the ship for 
the last three years, and who knows every rib and 
joint in her anatomy. All the money requisite for 
her completion is ready in bank ; and all the con- 
tracts for finishing and furnishing will be concluded 
before the end of the present month. Only forty 
mechanics are now at work; but on the 1st of 
March there will be, at least, a thousand — carpen= 
ters, painters, riggers, upholsterers, etc. — employed ; 



LIFE AND LTBERTT IN EUROPE. 113 

and the ship will be ready for sea on the 1st of Jnly 
next, when, after showing what she can do in " a 
grand excursion," she wdll point her mighty prow 
toward Portland, U.S. The new directors are men 
of great energy and practical talent. Mr. Ingram 
and Mr. Campbell, both members of Parliament, 
are investing large amounts of capital in the ship, 
under the conviction that she will prove a great 
commercial as well as mechanical success. Captain 
Harrison, after eighteen years of experience as a 
commander of steam-vessels, has unlimited faith in 
the speed, safety, and jprofits of the Great Eastern ; 
and stakes his hard-earned savings on the result. 
Of course there are skeptics and croakers who pre- 
dict all sorts of disasters ; but there never was an 
enterprise, a reform, or improvement, that did not 
have to encounter in the outset the sneers of the 
envious and the doubts of the incredulous. Frank- 
lin was laughed at for attempting to catch the 
lightning ; and Morse for endeavoring to send it on 
errands. Pifty-six years ago, when "William Sym- 
ington made the first successful experiment in steam 
navigation, by sending the little Charlotte Dundas 
from the port of Dundas to Glasgow, a distance of 
nineteen miles and a half, in six hours, all the world 
wondered and doubted. Five years afterward, 
when Robert Fulton, who had made a trip on the 



114 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OK, 

canal in Symington's hoat, launched tlie Clermont 
on tlie l!^ortli River, all the old fogies of the city 
assembled at the Battery to witness the grand 
failure^ and to pronounce the oracular '• I told you 
so !" In the year 1819, when the Savannah, a sort 
of mongrel, half steamer, half sailer, left E^ew 
York for Liverpool, many were the lugubrious pre- 
dictions that she would " blow up " before reaching 
port ; and even as recently as 1838, when the Great 
Western made her first passage across the Atlantic, 
in spite of scientific theories and the skeptical 
shrugs of veteran "Salts," the practicability of 
ocean steam navigation could hardly be regarded as 
one of the established facts and "received opin- 
ions" of the world. And now, behold the Great 
Eastern — the giant oak from the little acorn — the 
consummate product of half a century ! 

The Great Eastern will have large and elegant 
state-rooms for eight hundred first-class passengers, 
and ample accommodation for thousands of second- 
class. The number of hands in all departments re- 
quired to " work her " will be five hundred. She 
will have three propelling powers — the paddle, the 
screw, and the sails. Her speed is a question of 
lively speculation, and betting on her "time" is 
likely to run as high as at the Epsom races. As 
there may be no harm in venturing an opinion. 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EIJEOPE. 115 

without risking a fortune to back it, I will bet a 
bottle of Longwortli's best " Catawba " tliat the Great 
Eastern will ''do" the Atlantic inside of eight 
days ; and when the phenomenon reaches Portland 
she will almost pay for herself by dividing profits 
with the railroad companies, who will transport hun- 
dreds of thousands of passengers to see the show. 
Parties are already organizing here to go out to the 
States on the first trip ; and, if that is successful, 
she will return crowded with Americans, who will 
find life on board the Great Ship, at least more 
novel, and certainly not more expensive, than at 
E'ewport or Saratoga. She will carry a full cotillon 
band, and a complete j)rinting-o£fice ; a livery-stable 
has also been also suggested. The ship will be bril- 
liantly lighted with gas; orders will be conveyed 
by electric telegraph; and her track across the 
ocean should be distinctly marked on the charts, so 
that all other craft may give her as wide a berth as 
they would a rocky coast with a gale blowing in. 
And I take the liberty of respectfully suggesting to 
the British and to the United States' Governments 
that the Great Eastern should be allowed to send 
res]3ectively a member to Congress and a member 
to Parliament. Surely such an institution is as 
much entitled to representation as the "Yander- 



116 SPAEKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OK, 

bilt" or tlie "Galway line," both of whicli have 
carried their " members." 

The day's jonrnejings and wonderings over the 
momitainons, cavernous ship prepare ns to relish a 
dinner at the Trafalgar, Greenwich. And such a 
dinnerl Fish, fish, fish, in course after course ; and 
every dish so difierent from the preceding one as to 
create a new appetite. How the palate loves 
variety! And the art of tickling it is tlie great 
secret of cookery. I thought I had done with fish, 
and finished everything finny, when on came a sole 
omelet. " O ye gods and little fishes !" how I 
pitied poor Apicius ! The old Eoman gourmet, who 
never tasted this: he lived and died too soon! 
Sailors, astronomers, clockmakers, and mapmakers, 
may remember Greenwich as the place from which 
we "take time" and "reckon longitude;" while 
others may associate it with hospitals, pensioners, 
ISTell Gwynn, Jack Cade, Wat Tyler, the birth of 
kings and queens, and other historical trifles ; but 
in my fond memory that immortal sole alone shall 
live, unmixed with baser matters. A pleasant drive 
to town, and a nice supper at the Reform Club ; but 
no more eating. There are reminiscences of plea- 
sure too sacred to be disturbed. 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 117 



A Word about the Women. 

English Hotels — Dress, Masculine and Feminine — Hats Off — Femi- 
nine Feet — The Yeracity of Mother Goose — Buxom Beauty — A 
Bonnie Lassie — EngHsh Hospitality — Sights of all Sorts. 

Morlet's Hotel, London, 

February, 1859. 

During- my first two weeks in England, I have 
travelled over one thousand miles, and learned 
something, not only of the topography of the coun- 
try, but of railway locomotion and hotel life, both 
of which I find generally comfortable, and often 
luxurious. The great difference between the 
American and English hotel is the utter isolation 
of the guest in the latter, and the entire absence of 
ladies from the public apartments. Indeed, there 
is no public apartment, no tcMe (Thote^ no drawing- 
room— nothing but a coffee-room and smoking room 
for gentlemen. Except the landlady, who keeps 
the accounts, and the chambermaid, who makes the 
fires as well as the beds, one never sees a female in 
an English inn. The rooms are let by the day, and 
every item is charged, from a candle to a foot-bath ; 



118 SPARKS FEOM A LOCOMOTIVE; OE, 

and, at a first-class hotel, fifty cents a day for 
" attendance." And yet the entire cost, without 
wines, only averages about three dollars a day. 
The expense of travelling in first-class carriages is 
little les^ than a ponnd per hundred miles. The 
hack fare is miicli lower than in the United States. 
One can drive ahont in good style in London for 
half a dollar an hour, and twenty -five cents will 
carry yon to almost any theatre in the city. From 
"Morley's"to the leading club houses the fare is 
only a sixpence ; and yet, if you do not hand the 
driver a shilling, he is very apt to mumble some- 
thing about a "parliamentary customer;" for the 
M.P.'s, it seems, stick very conscientiously to the 
" legal rates." 

I find it no uncommon thing in England to meet 
" unprotected females " in the cars, and the higher 
the social position of the ladies the greater is their 
simplicity of dress and afi'ability of manner. So far 
as health, comfort and fitness are concerned, the 
American ladies have much to learn from the Eng- 
lish, especially in their travelling costume. We 
see no finery or frippery here in the railway car- 
riage ; and silks and satins in the street are apt to 
excite rather uncomplimentary suspicions of the 
wearers. The "Balmoral" is almost universally 
worn ; and even fiery red stockings are by no means 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 119 

uncommon. Long dresses are never seen out of 
drawing-rooms, and there tliey are worn "both long 
and low. The English women have magnificently 
exuberant busts ; and they " don't care who knows 
it." Full dress, for dinner or for the^ theatre, con- 
sists in " low neck and short sleeves," and this is 
observed de rigueur f' while all gentlemen are ex- 
pected to appear in black dress coats and unim- 
peachable gloves. At the Theatre Eoyal, in Liver- 
pool, the other evening, I was about entering the 
boxes with a lady on my arm, who wore on the 
back of her head a little " love of a bonnet," about 
the size of a japonica flower, when she was arrested 
by an usher, who politely informed her that the for- 
bidden bonnet must be left in the ante-room. Of 
course, there was a sixpence to pay for its safe 
keeping on coming out. Then the box keeper, who 
handed us a bill of the play, held out his fingers for 
a douceur^ remarking that he had to " pay for his 
situation." These trifles strike Americans as amioy- 
ances, but it is never wise for travellers to fret 
against established customs. "When among the 
Eomans, we must pay the tributes of the Komans. 

Thus far, I have seen but one pretty foot in 
England. I used to think the old nursery story 
about the " old woman who lived in a shoe," 
entirely fabulous ; but since I have seen the pedes- 



120 SPARES FKOM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OE, 

tals of some of these lovely living female statues I 
have formed a jnore favorable opinion of the 
veracity of " Mother Goose." But it is very evi- 
dent that a large foot is not considered a detriment 
to female beauty in England ; as the ladies make 
no effort to diminish the size of their feet by wear- 
ing pinching slippers. On the contrary, they wear 
clumsy gaiters, with heavy soles, which make their 
steps anything but fairy-like. And in this they 
show their good sense. One half of the consump- 
tion cases among the American women are owing to 
wafer-soled shoes, which render walking both diffi- 
cult and dangerous. And so they sit pining in satin 
chairs in their over-heated rooms, sucking cough 
candy, and waiting for the doctor, and his shadow 
the undertaker ; while these buxom English beauties 
are tramping about in their water-proof boots, or 
darting through lanes and parks in their saddles. 
To appear delicate or lackadaisical is no part of an 
English woman's ambition. Health and vigor of 
body are considered of primary importance, not 
only for comfort's sake, but as the most essential 
qualifications for satisfactorily and successfully per- 
forming the duties of wives and mothers. And 
they dress, and eat, and exercise accordingly. On 

calling on Lady B the other morning, one of 

the most beautiful and accomplished ladies in Lon- 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 121 

don, I found lier dressed in a plain, purple colored 
woollen robe, made of cheap and coarse material, 
and yet so tastefully fitting her fine figure that I 
was struck with the elegance and the comfort of the 
ensemble. An ultra fashionable belle of the Fifth 
Avenue would hardly " come down " to her visitor 
in so simple a costume ; or if she did, it would be 
with a confusion of apologetic words and blushes. 

Lady B has a fine little boy baby, eight 

months old, and she insisted on my waiting until 
he returned from his morning walk in the Park. 
When the little fellow, the heir of a long list of 
lofty titles, was brought in, I was struck with the 
rich ruddiness of his cheeks, and the Hebe-like 
healthiness of his complexion. But the secret was 
soon explained. '' He lives in the park," said the 
proud and happy mother as she smothered the little 
embryo Earl with her kisses. Among the aristo- 
cracy of ]^ew York, these budding specimens of 
humanity are seldom brought from the nursery, 
especially for exhibition by exulting mothers. 

In a railway carriage the other day I chanced to 
meet a bonnie looking Scotch lassie, who was 
travelling alone, and not indisposed to conversation, 
breaking the ice on starting from the station, by 
asking if I " would be so kind as to remove my 
tra/ps from the seat " in front of me, and allow her 



122 SPARES FROM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OR, 

to occupy it. The " traps " alluded to, consisted 
of a shawl and a travelling bag. Of course I was 
only too happy to have such a pretty face for a ms- 
d-vis. Finding in me " a foreigner " (it is sad to 
be called a foreigner), my fair companion kindly 
called my attention to the points of interest on the 
road ; told me where she came from, whither she 
was going, and very pleasantly and gracefully 
" defined her position," which was a very respect- 
able one, notwithstanding she had to travel over 
two hundred miles, and not to reach her place of 
destination until 11 o'clock at night. She had 
been to Liverpool to see her sister off to America, 
whose husband is a partner in the largest dry goods 
house in England ; and although but just out of 
school, I have seldom met a woman who conversed 
more fluently or intelligently. Among other 
subjects she talked geology "like a book," having 
evidently studied the science with great Hugh 
Miller-ty 1 And in Biblical matters she seemed to 
have Scripture enough at her tongue's end to 
match a " forty horse parson power." So far, my 
experience inclines me to the opinion that if the 
" English people are reserved," the habit does not 
belong to the tongues of the ladies. 

I have noted these little matters en jpassant^ as 
personal peculiarities. They are scarcely of suffi- 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 123 

cient importance to be called national character- 
istics. In accompanying tbis running record with 
a few casual comments, I profess to be entirely free 
from national prejudices. I came to Europe a cos- 
mopolitan, with none but the kindest feelings in 
my heart, and, consequently, expecting everywhere 
to meet the same spirit. In this I have not been 
disappointed. The hospitality of the acquaintances 
I have met and made is unbounded ; and the only 
time, free from pleasant social engagements, which 
I have to write for private or public eyes, is when 
the eyes of my friends are asleep, and when my 
own are heavy. I have already seen Abbotsford, 
Sir "Walter Scott's beautiful poem in stone ; old 
Melrose Abbey — ^but not by " the pale moonlight ;" 
have witnessed the grand pageant of the opening 
of Parliament, and listened to the pleasant-voiced 
Queen's beautiful reading of her admirable 
" speech ;" have passed a day in feasting on the 
pictorial riches of Hampton Court ; spent hours in 
wandering over that mechanical iron wonder — ^the 
Great Eastern — the epic of the nineteenth century ; 
eaten a famous fish dinner with Captain Harrison 
and Herbert Ingram, Esq., at Greenwich ; dined at 
the Eeform Club with Charles Mackay and several 
of the leading editors and members of Parliament ; 
visited the Haymarket theatre, where old Chippen- 



124 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OR, 

dale's familiar voice brought up pleasant reminis- 
cences of the Old Park ; the St. James, where 
M'me Faure, the pretty prima donna, sang sweetly 
in the French comedy opera of "Le Caid," and 
looked so like as to give me a touch of home- 
sickness; have heard Baron Mcholson deliver one 
of his beastly charges to the " Jury ;" seen the line 
theatrical portraits at the Garrick Club, and some 
still finer ones at Evan's ; have listened to the fine 
bands of the Argyle Eooms, and the Holborn 
Casino ; witnessed their mad and melancholy 
dances ; and the sad sight of a thousand Camilles in 
real life, trying to be gay while feasting and fam- 
ishing on their seductive apples of ashes ; have 
mounted the soaring dome of St. Paul's, and crossed 
all the bridges of the Thames ; and — well I must 
retain something for .another steamer, and a more 
leisure hour, London cannot be " done " at a sitting. 



XIFE AND LIBEETY IN EUROPE. 125 



English Celebrities. 

Sir Bulwer Lytton — His Works — Personal Appearance — Dinner — 
Bulwer's Opinion of Prescott, Irving, Cooper — ^The Earl of 
Malmsbnry — Kind feelings toward America — Lord Lyons. 

Morley's Hotel, London, 

February 17, 1859. 

Last evening I had the honor of dining with Sir 
Edward Bulwer Lytton, at his magnificent mansion 
ISTo. 1 Park Lane, Piccadilly. Of all the living au- 
thors of England, Sir Edward was the one I most 
wished to see. As a novelist, a poet, an orator and 
a statesman — "take him for all in all" — where 
shall we find his peer ? For the last thirty years 
the reading world has fed upon his thoughts, and 
an entire generation has been stimulated and edu- 
cated by his glowing poetry and his fine philosophy. 
It was not as one of Her Majesty's Secretaries of 
State, who has charge of her " sixty colonies," that 
I desired to make the acquaintance of Bulwer (for, 
dropping all titles, this is the name by which the 
world knows him best) ; but, as a poet of the finest 



126 



fancies, and as an author of the richest and ripest 
productions of the age. The mere mention of his 
works is like running over the keys of pleasant me- 
mories, awakening the most delightful reminis- 
cences of the times and places in which they were 
originally read, and of the living acquaintances 
ever associated with his ideal characters. Let me 
see if I can recall them in the order of their appear- 
ance, without an overwhelming feeling of home- 
sickness for the youth and romance left behind. 

E. L. Bulwer was born a poet and a politician in 
the year 1805. At the age of fifteen he published 
the first blossoms of his genius in a little volume of 
verses entitled " Ismael." Five years later came 
his noble " Prize Poem on Sculpture ;"^ then his 
" Weeds and Wild Flowers," a bouquet of fugitive 
poems privately printed in Paris. In 1827, he en- 
tered the Horse Guards, and struck his true vein of 
authorship, and gave the world his brilliant maiden 
fiction, the rhetorical, skeptical, aspiring and de- 
spairing " Falkland." This was speedily followed 
by " O'Neill, or the Kebel ;" and in the midst of 
his mental and moral efi'ervescence, Bulwer commit- 
ted matrimony and retired from the army. In a 
lonely and lovely part of Oxfordshire, the somewhat 
subdued and disenchanted author gave himself up 
to study and meditation, throwing off annually, at 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUKOPE. 127 

least, a "three volume" novel: Pelham, or the Ad- 
ventures of a Gentleman; The Disowned; Deve- 
reux ; Paul Clifford ; The Siamese Twins ; Eugene 
Aram ; The Pilgrims of the Ehine ; Godolphin ; 
The Student ; England and the English ; Tlie Last 
Days of Pompeii ; Kienzi ; Leila ; Calderon, the 
Courtier ; His maiden play — ^The Duchess de la Yal- 
li^re ; Athens, its Else and Fall ; Ernest Maltra- 
vers ; Alice, or the Mysteries ; The Lady of Lyons, 
or Love and Pride — one of the most popular dra- 
mas ever written ; Eichelieu, or the Conspiracy — 
the greatest play since Shakspeare ; The Sea-Cap- 
tain, or the Birthright — which I have never read 
nor seen acted ; Money — a brilliant satirical comedy; 
[N'ot so Bad as We Seem, or Many Sides to a Cha- 
racter — ^liis latest theatrical production, written in 
1851 ; JS^ight and Morning ; Zanoni ; Eva, and the 
Ill-Omened Marriage ; The Last of the Barons ; The 
'New Timon — an extraordinary poem, full of sarcas- 
tic hits at the times ; Lucretia, or the Children of 
l^ight ; Harold, the Last of the Saxon Kings ; King 
Arthur : An Epic in Twelve Books ; The Caxtons : 
A Family Picture ; My Kovel, or Yarieties of Eng- 
lish Life ; and What will he Do with It — just 
completed and published in four volumes. These, 
with his numerous articles in "Blackwood," the 
"Kew Monthly," the "Monthly Chronicle," the 



128 SPAKKS FKOM A LOCOMOTIVE; OB, 

""Westminster," the "Edinburgh," the "Foreign 
Quarterly," etc., etc., comprise the literary labors 
of the most prolific, the most powerful, and the most 
successful author of the age. The appropriate motto 
upon Sir Edward's crest is ^^ Hoc virtutis oj^usP 
And all this labor has been accomplished in the 
midst of every possible temptation to idleness and 
luxury ; under the depressing effects of physical 
debility ; and, worse than all, of domestic infelicity ! 
Sir Edward is wealthy, independent of his salary 
as minister, and his income as author. The Messrs. 
Routledge pay him $100,000 for the copyright of a 
cheap edition of his works for ten years. As the 
lord of Knebworth Castle, with revenues equal to 
the most expansive taste ; as a member of the 
British Cabinet, and a leader of Parliament ; but, 
above all, as the best read romancist and writer of 
the day. Sir Bulwer Lytton, at the age of fifty-three, 
has achieved a fame, a fortune, and a position un- 
paralleled in the history of men of genius. In per- 
son, he is a little above the medium height, with a 
figure slight, almost to frailty. His fine head 
affords the most indubitable proof of the general 
veracity of phrenology. It is a splendid dome of 
intellect, widening in the region of " ideality," and 
affording ample scope for all the superior faculties, 
There is nothing of the apjpearance or manner of the 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUKOPK. 129 

Englishman about him ; but, on the contrary, he is 
entirely cosmopolitan, in look, dress, and tone of 
conversation. His hair, like his thin- whiskers and 
moustache, is of a lightish brown color. He wears 
it cut close behind, and lifted up in front, giving 
his head a look of distinguished loftiness. 

The dinner party, yesterday, consisted of fifteen 
persons, mostly noblemen and Members of Parlia- 
ment ; the hour, half-past seven o'clock. There was 
no general talk at the table, each guest conversing 
sotto voce with the gentlemen on either side of him. 
The courses were numerous, and the viands and the 
wines of the choicest qualities. The table was orna- 
mented with tasteful pyramids of flowers ; the ser- 
vice was of gold and silver ; and the servants, in 
small-clothes, white cravats and powdered hair, 
looked like the dramatis jpersoncB in the " School for 
Scandal." After dinner the conversation became 
more general and animated, but the topics were 
usually of more or less public interest. Being the 
only American present, and the only one who had 
even seen America, I had many questions to 
answer. I suppose I could not have given the great 
novelist any information that would have gratified 
him more touching the Transatlantic appreciation 
of his works, than the fact that his sweet and simple 
little song : 

6* 



130 SPARKS FKOM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OK, 

" When stars are in the quiet skies, 
Then most I pine for thee," etc. 

is found on almost every pianoforte in America. 
Sir Edv7ard greatly regrets that he had not visited 
the United States in his "travelling days." He 
expressed, as did several others, the most profound 
sorrov^^ at the death of Prescott, for v^hose vrorks he 
entertains the highest admiration, asked affection- 
ately after "Washington Irving, and remarked that 
he did not think the Americans had yet done justice 
to Cooper, adding, " he may have offended a por- 
tion of his coimtrymen by his politics or his man- 
ners ; but what have these to do with an author's 
works ? let them be judged by themselves." Know- 
ing that Bulwer was a good smoker, I had the 
satisfaction of giving him, and seeing him enjoy, 
perhaps one of the best cigars that ever regaled his 
dainty senses. It was of the genuine l^ew York 
Hotel " ISTo. One " brand, and the tapestried walls 
of Sir Edward's parlors were never perfumed with 
a more " fragrant Havana." 

The Lytton titles and estates will be inherited by 
Edward Eobert, Bulwer's sole son and heir, whose 
matrimonial engagement to a Dutch lady is just 
announced. He is a young man of fine literary 
talents, and a poet of a high order. His latest pro- 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUKOPE. 131 

duction is just now receiying the universal com- 
mendation of the London critics. He left town a 
fews days since to resume the duties of his post as 
Secretary to the Embassy at Yienna. 

The Earl of Malmeshury, who was not present at 
the dinner yesterday, but with whom I have had 
a very pleasant interview, is a man of about fifty 
years of age, although scarcely above forty in appear- 
ance. He is a noble-looking man, with a serious, 
substantial-looking face, quite the heau ideal of a 
statesman. His cares are heavy and his labors 
severe, occupying, on an average, as he told me, 
eleven hours a day. Toward the United States he 
expressed the kindest feelings, and an earnest wish 
that the '' Central American irritations," as he 
termed them, might soon be pacified, remarking 
that " the back-bone of the Clayton-Bulwer Treaty 
was simply a guaranty of the neutrality of the 
Isthmus." Lord Malmesbury very justly thinks 
that the people of England and America are bound 
together by common ties and common interests; 
and he finds the government at Washington dis- 
posed to act in good faith to cement the bonds of 
amity and peace. 

Lord Lyons, the new British Minister at Wash- 
ington, is a young, good-looking, pleasant-mannered 
bachelor, and is spoken of very highly here as a 



132 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIYE ; OR, 

thoroughly-educated diplomatist. His Secretary, 
the Hon. Mr. Monson, is also a highly accom- 
plished young gentleman. Lord Lyons sails direct 
for Chesapeake Bay; and with these prevailing 
westerly winds he is likely to have a rather long 
passage. 

I might add personal sketches of Lord Derby and 
other of the leading and ruling political powers 
of England ; but perhaps I have already dwelt too 
long on these weighty celebrities, and should select 
some lighter themes to close a " sparkling " letter. 
In the meantime there is a " budget " debate com- 
ing on in the House of Lords, and I will go and see 
how it compares with the dignities, and indignities, 
of the Senate of the United States. 



LIFE AND LIBEKTY IN EUROPE. 133 



More Celebrities. 

An Evening with Leigh Hunt — Abou Ben Adhem — ^Byron — ^Words- 
worth — Burns — The Cosmopolitan Club — Tom Taylor — Milnes — 
Layard — Mrs. Norton — Stirling — Hughes. 

Mokley's Hotel, London, 

Friday, Feb. 25, 1859. 

An evening with Leigh Hunt — a night at the Cos- 
mopolitan Club — a breakfast with R. Moncton 
Milnes — a dinner at the Rojal London Yacht Club 
— a dinner with the American Association — a din- 
ner at (the late) Crockford's— dinner at the Oxford 
and Cambridge Club — and last and best of all, a 
dinner at the Hon. Mrs. ^t^Torton's ; surely here are 
" topics" enough to make a moderate letter without 
any sprinkling in of the minor incidents of interest 
that have occurred during the week. At either of 
the several gatherings mentioned, I have met cele- 
brities worthy of full-length sketches ; and yet, in 
this kaleidoscopic whirl of London life, a passing 
glimpse is about all we can get, or give, of men fa- 
mous in the world of letters, of politics, and of art ; 
of names that are destined to be preserved and per- 



134 SFAKKS FKOM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OK, 

petuated in the adamantine types of histoiy, when, 
but for their immortality, the very cities in which 
they lived might be forgotten. 

I found Leigh Hunt living in a pleasant little 
cottage at Hammersmith, on the Cornwall Road, a 
little beyond Kensington. The visit had been 
arranged by his son, Thornton Hunt, Esq., the able 
editor of the " Spectator," and the hour w^as seven 
o'clock on Sunday evening. On entering the little 
parlor, used as a " study," a tall figure, dressed in 
a morning gown, with a large cape, came forward 
and grasped my hand with a sort of feminine ten- 
derness and enthusiasm, and said, "I am glad to 
welcome a gentleman who has spoken such hearty 
words for Burns." Tea was soon ordered ; and for 
two delightful hours I sat listening to the fluent and 
unflagging talk of the contemporary, the companion 
and the friend of Byron, Keats, Coleridge, "Words- 
worth, Southey, Lamb, Moore, Campbell, and all 
the men of wit and wisdom whose stars have spar- 
kled and vanished in the literary galaxy of England 
during the last fifty years. Leigh Hunt is now 
nearly eighty years of age ; and yet his complexion 
has the fairness and softness of youth. His hair is 
as white as the bloom of the almond tree, and as 
full and glossy as the head of a child. His brow is 
broad and beautiful, and his eye as gentle and as 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 135 

clear as that of a woman who has never seen a 
cloudy day. His heart is as merry as a bird's, and 
his look and manner alternately playful and pen- 
sive, but without a shadow of sadness. The dear 
old man, with all his precious poetic memories — 
with his venerable juvenility — this genial octogena- 
rian, this unfading rose in the snow — how like he 
seemed to his own glorious " Abou Ben Adhem," 
that sweet essence of all Religion distilled into a 
single drop ; and which, by the way, as the author 
has kindly sent it to me, written in his own beauti- 
ful hand, I will here quote, although it may be 
already familiar to every school-boy in America : 

" Abou Ben Adhem (may his tribe increase !) 
Awoke one night from a deep dream of peace, 
And saw within the moonlight in his room, 
Making it rich, and, like a lily in bloom, 
An angel, writing in a book of gold. 
Exceeding peace had made Ben Adhem bold ; 
And to the presence in the room he said : 
' What writest thou ?' The vision raised its head, 
And, with a look, made of all sweet accord. 
Answered, * The names of those that love the Lord.' 
' And is mine one ?' said Abou. ' Nay, not so,' 
Replied the angel. Abou spoke more low. 
But cheerily still, and said, ' I pray thee, then, 
Write me as one who loves his fellow men.' 

The angel wrote, and vanished. The next night 
It came again with a great wakening light, 



136 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OR, 

And show'd the names whom love of God had blesa'd, 
And lo! Ben Adhem's name led all the rest." 

The poet has a copy of his favorite gem, exqui- 
sitely written and illuminated by Miss Proctor 
(daughter of Barry Cornwall), handsomely framed, 
and hung near his writing-table. I shall not 
attempt to repeat the many wise words, admirable 
criticisms, and pleasant personal anecdotes with 
which he instructed and entertained me; but a 
capital illustration of Wordsworth was too good to 
be lost. " He was a fine lettuce, with too many 
outside leaves P'' Of Byron, he spoke with great 
sympathy and admiration; of the unfavorable 
maternal influences that warped his budding 
genius ; and of the school-boy sneers at his lame- 
ness, which irritated his temper. But added that 
he was neither habitually moody nor morose, 
"usually humming about in the morning, and 
reserving his more serious compositions for the 
night." " In Bjo-on," said Mr. Hunt, " there was a 
conflict of jealousy which the world never fully 
understood. The Lord was jealous of the Poet / 
and the Poet was jealous of the LordP 

Of Burns and the old Scotch Poets, Mr. Hunt 
talked in a strain of ardent and eloquent admira- 
tion, quoting with great glee : 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUKOPE. 137 

" Our gude man cam' hame at e'en, 
And hame cam' ie." 

The idea of " buttons on blankets " seemed to 
amuse him infinitely. 

On leaving, the good old Foet-Essayist presented 
me with a copy of his latest work, " The Town : Its 
Memorable Characters and Events," which ought to 
be republished in the States for the author's benefit, 
especially after the shabby treatment he received 
from a literary adventurer, who, a few years since, 
brought out an American edition of Leigh Hunt's 
Poems, for which Messrs. Ticknor and Fields paid 
pretty handsomely, but which has never reached the 
focket of the author ! Mr. Hunt's family consists 
of himself and two daughters — both pretty and the 
younger single. 

From Leigh Hunt's to the Cosmopolitan Club, 
whose rooms are only open on Wednesday and 
Sunday evenings, and not then until 10 p.m. 
There I find a choice collection of paintings, and 
a still choicer collection of "Spirits" of various 
brands. Among them Richard Monckton Milnes, 
the poet ; Tom Taylor, the dramatist ; Kinglake, the 
author of " Eothen ;" Mr. Layard, the Nineveh resur- 
rectionist ; Turkish pipes ; tolerable cigars ; fine 
brandy ; a few jolly lords, etc., etc., etc. The 
" Cosmopolitans " are men of talent, of genius, of 



138 SPARKS FKOM A LOCOMOTIVE; OE, 

travel, who sink nationalities (at least twice a 
week), and meet on the broad plane of universal 
ideas ; as the disillusioned, disembodied spirits are 
supposed to meet in another and a better world. 
What follows from such a "free interchange of 
sentiments" may be more easily imagined than 
described. These meetings are like a communion 
of saints, without sects; of Christians, without 
creeds; and of men without prejudice. A great 
and glorious institution is the " Cosmopolitan." 

Tom Taylor is tall, rather slender, young looking, 
with a full black beard. He is the most successful 
of the living dramatists, and holds a handsome 
government office besides. He wishes to see the 
United States, where he is already so well known ; 
and I urged him strongly to go. He says Laura 
Keene has treated him very handsomely, and that 
she is entirely right in her controversy about " Our 
American Cousin." 

The author of "Eothen" is a short, slender, deli- 
cate-looking man, with pleasant manners, and an 
easy talker. He is a member of Parliament for 
Bridgewater, and is hard at work on the " History 
of the Crimean War." Mr. Layard is a stoutish 
man, with a bushy beard, slightly touched with 
frost, decidedly jolly in look and manner, but a 
little sore, it is said, at being ousted from Parlia- 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 139 

ment. He, also, is hoping soon to see the 
United States, and explore, without excava- 
tions, the magnificent Ninevehs and Babylons of 
the West. 

The poet Milnes, whom I have since met at 
breakfast in his own house (a pleasant mode of en- 
tertainment, after the fashion of the late poet 
Rogers), is rather short, and slightly plethoric. 
His face is round, ruddy and handsome ; while his 
welcome presence and easy self-possession, in the 
soirees of the most distinguished ladies and gentle- 
men, led the witty and cruelly-epithetical Sydney 
Smith to say of Mr. Milnes' approach on a certain 
occasion: "Here comes the cool of the evening." 
Mr. Milnes is a man of large wealth and high posi- 
tion ; he has been a member of Parliament for some 
twenty years ; and his late father was offered a seat 
in the Cabinet and a peerage, both of which he 
declined. It is presumed that the son, learning 
wisdom by his father's modesty, will accept either 
on the first opportunity. Mr. Milnes is the author 
of some half a dozen volumes of poems, of a high 
order; and has written numerous essays for the 
leading reviews and magazines. 

Skipping over several interesting " engagements," 
I reserve the acquaintance of Mrs. Caroline l^orton 
— the grand-daughter of Kichard Brinsley Sheridan, 



140 8PAKKS FEOM A LOCOMOTIVE; OR, 

the sweetest poetess of the age, and one of the 
handsomest women in England — as a sort of honne 
louche^ the first to be remembered and the last to 
be forgotten among the pleasant reminiscences of 
London — the " memorable events of the week." 

Soon after arriving in town, I received a charm- 
ing note from Mrs. J^orton (then on a visit to the 
Duchess of Sutherland at Trentham), promising an 
opportunity of a visit on her return to the city, in 
the course of a few days ; and day before yesterday 
the card of invitation came. She lives in a nice 
house in Chesterfield street. May Fair, with a son 
recently married to a pretty N^eapolitan. (Her 
other son, so beautifully described in " The Mother's 
Heart," is Secretary of the British Embassy at 
Paris). Mrs. ]S"orton had been so often and so 
minutely described to me, by one of her most 
devoted friends, and her handsome face had been 
made so familiar by paintings and engravings, that 
I should have recognized her among a million. 
Her form is tall, full and ronnd; her complexion 
rich and rose-like ; her teeth white ; her eye large, 
lustrous and liquid ; her hair dark and massive ; and 
over all there plays a smile of the most bewitching 
sweetness. Her conversation is brilliant and lively ; 
and her laugh is a gush of musical inspiration. 
"Time writes no wrinkles on her lovely brow!" 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 141 

At the dinner, Mr. William Stirling, M.P., was the 
only other guest present; but Mr. Hughes, the 
popular author of "The Scouring of the White 
Horse," and "Tom Browne's School Days," who 
could not come in time for soup, dropped in in time 
for coffee. And then followed one of those charm- 
ing Noctes AmhrosiancB to be recalled in pleasant 
dreams — but not for the columns of the newspaper. 
Mrs. ]J^orton opened a casket of rare autographs ; 
among them several elegantly written notes and 
letters from Louis ^Napoleon and the Duke of 
Orleans; but what she justly prized most highly 
was a curl of Byron's hair. 

It will be gratifying to the multitudinous ad- 
mirers in America of the fair author of " Love 
Not," "We have been Friends Together," "The 
Dream," and many other popular poems and 
romances, to know that she is living comfortably 
and elegantly, not to say luxuriously; and sur- 
rounded by a devoted circle of friends in the high- 
est ranks of society, who rejoice in the prospect of 
the rich, calm autumn now setting in, and succeed- 
ing to the stormy spring and tempestuous summer 
that have darkened, yet deepened, the life of this 
rare and radiant woman. 



142 SPAEK8 FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OR, 



Washington's Birthday. 

A London Election — A London Jam — The American Association — 
Mount Yernon Tomb — A Pleasant Incident — The Crown and the 
Sovereign. 

London, February^ 1859. 

DuEiNa the last three days there has been an ex- 
citing election going on for member of Parliament 
for the borough of Mary-le-bone, a district of Lon- 
don, embracing about 400,000 inhabitants; and I 
have had an opportunity of seeing " how t^e thing 
was done." The candidates were Mr. Edwin James, 
Q.C., a very eminent lawyer, and a popular mem- 
ber of the " Reform Club," and Mr. Romilly, a son 
of the late well-known Law Reformer. Tlie latter 
was supported by the aristocracy ; the former was the 
favorite of the Liberals — the people ; and in a vote 
of some 10,000, Mr. James has a majority of about 
2,000. On the first day, the candidates appeared 
together on a rostrum, surrounded by their respec- 
tive friends, and announced themselves — each mak- 
ing a speech " for himself." A show of hands was 
then called for. A few gloved digits went up for 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 143 

Eomillj, a thousand naked hands for James. On 
the second day the vote was gathered. Each voter 
being numbered, called at his particular poll, and 
declared or swore himself to be the identical man 
bearing a certain name and number, mentioning at 
the same time the name of his candidate. His vote 
was recorded by a mark against his name — a very 
simple and admirable system of registration, which, 
or some other system, must be adopted in JSTew 
York, or we shall rue it worse and worse. On the 
third day the result is declared, and the winner 
takes his oath and his seat in Parliament. 

There is great rejoicing at the Reform Club over 
the success of Mr. James, who, in the coming change 
of the. Ministry, will be very likely to find him- 
self in the Cabinet or on the Bench. He is a 
decidedly clever man ; and, in personal appearance, 
almost a twin-likeness of Chief Justice Ames of 
Ehode Island. 

The " Spectator" of this week announces the fact 
that Prince ISTapoleon has been made " Grand Ad- 
miral of Prance," an office, I believe, that has not 
been revived for some seventy years. It may have 
some important bearing upon the future movements 
of the Imperial 'Nslyj. 

There is to be an excitement in the House of 
Commons this evening. Lord Palmerston having 



144: SPAKKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OR, 

given notice that lie will make inquiries of the 
Ministry touching " the state of Europe," every seat 
in the gallery has been at a premium for several days. 

Last evening I had the honor of "assisting" (to 
make a jam) in the sumptuous parlors of Mr. S win- 
ton, a fashionable artist, where there was a grand 
exhibition of pictures, paintings and Sevres vases. 
About 800 of the nobility were present in full ball- 
room dress ; and the show of living pictures and 
celebrities was quite remarkable. Among the no- 
tabilities were Lord Lansdowne, Lord Stanley, Lord 
Bury, Hon. Mrs. ISTorton, and other lordships and 
ladyships, " too numerous to mention." It was odd 
to see the eager crowd of men, and women, too, 
lining the streets at midnight to catch glimpses of 
nobility, as the aristocratic London " Brown " an- 
nounced in Stentorian voice — " Lady Derby's car- 
riage stoj^s the way ; Lady Mary Stanley's servant 
is here; Lady Colchester's coach is ready," etc., etc. 

Of the Washington Birthday dinner (which Mr. 
Dallas made a mistake by not attending), I have 
not space for a full report. But the following con- 
densed notice taken from " The Illustrated London 
News," is accurate and just : 

Washington's Biethdat, — The American Association, or 
club, of London, loyal to, the memory of their great and good 
Washington, commemorated the one hundred and twenty- 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 145 

seventh anniversary of his birth by a banquet at Willis's 
Rooms on the 22d inst. General Campbell, the American 
Consul, and the newly elected president of the club, being de- 
tained at home by illness, the chair was filled by Mr. Croskey, 
late American Consul at Southampton. On his right was 
seated the Hon. Mr. Ward, the recently appointed United 
States Minister to China, who is now en route for his post, 
and on his left the Hon. Robert Dale Owen, late United States 
Minister at Naples. The following toasts were drunk, and 
responded to in reply : 

" The memory of "Washington," drunk standing in silence ; 
" The President of the United States ;" " The Queen of Great 
Britain;" "The day we celebrate, the one hundred and 
twenty-seventh Anniversary of the Birth of Washington," 
responded to by R. B. Kimball, Esq. ; " The Diplomatic and 
Consular Service of the United States," by the Hon. Robert 
Dale Owen and the Hon. John E. Ward ; " The United States 
and Great Britain — the lands of liberty— may peace between 
them be eternal," by the Hon. J. Wethered; *' Our Country 
and its citizens, by birth and choice," by Dr. G.Holland; 
" The Associates of the American Association in London," 
by A. Arcedeckne, Esq. ; " The Press at Home and Abroad," 
by Colonel H. Fuller and Chas. Mackay, Esq., LL.D. 

With one or two prolix and prosy exceptions, the speaking 
was eloquent and appropriate. Dr. Mackay's remarks on the 
identity of the two nations; Colonel Fuller's description of 
the Mount Yernon Tomb; Mr. Kimball's and Mr. Ward's 
eulogiums ; and Mr. Arcedeckne's and Mr. Barney Williams's 
" songs, sentiments, and speeches," were each and all much to 
the purpose, and received with the greatest enthusiasm. We 
give in to-day's "Illustrated London JSTews" a correct Yiew of 



14:6 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OR, 

the Tomb of Washington, accompanied bj the following de- 
scription by Colonel Fuller — an extract from his speech at the 
dinner : 

THE TOMB OF WASHINGTON. 

'No spot in America is visited with greater inte- 
rest, or with feelings of more profound reverence 
than Mount Yernon; and no day is held more 
sacred in the calendar of the Republic than the day 
which gave birth to the " Father of his Country." 
This day is always commemorated throughout the 
United States by balls, banquets, and various other 
festive demonstrations, and by American citizens 
all over the world. 

It is hardly necessary to state that George Wash- 
ington was born in the State of Yirginia, on the 
22d of February, 1732 ; that he was the Com- 
mander-in-Chief of the American forces during the 
E-evolutionary War; that he was the first Presi- 
dent of the United States (twice elected) ; that he 
retired to Mount Yernon in 1796, and there died, 
on the 14:th day of December, 1799, at the age of 
sixty-seven. "With these facts in the great and good 
man's history, everybody is familiar ; while the 
hallowed spot consecrated by his ashes is equally 
familiar to the eyes of thousands of travellers from 
all parts of the civilized world. But only the 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN ErROPE. 147 

"privileged few" can visit those far-off "Meccas " 
where the universal admiration of man loves to 
paj its pilgrim homage, and so the imagination 
of the million must be satisfied with pictures. 
The faithful artist brings the Mountain to 
Mahomet. 

To those unacquainted with the locality of Mount 
Vernon, it may be necessary to state, that it is situ- 
ated on the banks of the Potomac, about sixteen 
miles from "Washington. Steamboats plying be- 
tween the capital of the nation and Aquia Creek, 
on the great line of southern travel, constantly pass 
it, but never without a solemn tolling of the bell, 
when every passenger uncovers his head, and gazes 
in silent, thoughtful, often tearful reverence, at the 
venerable mansion and the modest tomb wherein 
rest the remains of him " who died childless that 
his country might call him Father." 

"How sleep the brave who sink to rest, 
By all their country's wishes blessed ; 
When Spring, with dewy fingers cold, 
Returns to deck their hallowed mold, 
She there shall dress a sweeter sod 
Than Fancy's feet have ever trod. 

" By fairy hands their knell is rung, 
By forms unseen their dirge is sung ; 



148 SPARKS FKOM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OE, 

There Honor comes, a pilgrim grey, 
To bless the turf that wraps their clay ; 
And Freedom shall awhile repair 
To dwell a weeping hermit there !" 

The Wasliington mansion, aithougli in rather a 
dilapidated condition, is beautifully located on ele- 
vated ground ; and the tomb is at a little distance 
from it, on the southern slope of the hill. It con- 
sists of an excavation, walled and arched with 
bricks, and surrounded by a plain iron railing. 
Over the door are engraved those blessed words of 
immortal hope: "I am the Eesurrection and the 
Life : he that believeth in me, though he were 
dead, yet shall he live." Over the iron gate there 
is a stone, with this inscription: "Within this in- 
closure rest the remains of General George Wash- 
ington." There are two marble sarcophagi. The 
larger one contains the ashes, and bears the name, 
in large letters, of " Washington." It is formed from 
a solid block of marble, eight feet in length by two 
in height. Upon the lid there is a shield, beauti- 
fully chiselled, having thirteen longitudinal stripes 
resting on the American flag, and surmounted by 
an eagle, with outspread wings, grasping a sheaf of 
arrows and an olive-branch. The smaller sar- 
cophagus contains the remains of Martha, the wife 
of Washington. Until quite recently the Mount 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 149 

Yemon estate, consisting of some twelve hundred 
acres, has been the property of Mr. John A. Wash- 
ington ; but for many years there has been a grow- 
ing feeling in the United States that so sacred a 
spot ought not to be the private possession of any 
individual, subject to the fluctuations of fortune, or 
to the degrading dispositions of necessity. Mr. 
"Washington, the inheritor of the sacred estate, has 
been reluctant to part with any portion of it ; but 
the increasing wants of a large family, whom he is 
liberally educating, have compelled him to dispose 
of about two hundred acres, including the mansion 
and the tomb. The State of Yirginia, during the 
past year, granted a charter to the Mount Yernon 
Association enabling it to hold the property in per- 
petual trust; and, through the personal efforts of 
Miss Cunningham, of Charleston; Madame Le 
Yert, of Mobile ; Mrs. Anna Cora Eitchie, of Eich- 
mond; and last, though by no means least, the 
Hon. Edward Everett, of Boston, the greater part 
of the required sum has been raised, and the balance 
will soon be forthcoming. Mr. Everett, by giving 
the entire proceeds of his eloquent "Lecture on 
Washington," which he has delivered and re- 
delivered in all the principal towns and cities in 
the Union, has already handed over to the treasury 
of the Mount Yernon Association about 80,000 



150 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OE, 

dollars, including a check for 10,000 dollars, given 
him by "^he proprietor of the " I^ew York Ledger " 
for a weekly contribution for one year to be called 
the " Mount Yernon Papers," which are now regu- 
larly appearing in the columns of that marvellously- 
successful newspaper, which has obtained a weekly 
circulation of nearly half a million copies. 

It is not my intention to indulge in eulogistic 
strains to "the immortal memory of , Washington," 
but simply point a reverent finger to his humble 
tomb at Mount Yernon ; while the world proudly 
points to his " country as his monument." He was 
a soldier, a statesman, and a chief magistrate, of 
whom his great political antagonist, Jefferson, said, 
" He was a man incapable of fear, of integrity the 
most pure, and of justice the most inflexible." 

" It is a pleasant fact to mention in connection 
with this subject that the venerable "Washington 
Irving, one of the finest writers of the English lan- 
guage in either hemisphere, and who, when an in- 
fant, was placed in the arms of General Washington 
by his nurse for a blessing, has been for many years 
engaged upon the life of the Pater Patrige, and has 
now nearly completed the fifth and last volume. 
"Irving's Washington" will be a glorious monu- 
ment, both to the subject and to the author of it — 
a thousand times better as an inspiration, and a 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 151 

tributary memorial to greatness, than the colossal 
marble shaft that still halts half completed in the 
capital of the nation, to rebuke the sluggish patriot- 
ism of an ungrateful people. 

A pleasant little incident occurred to me the 
other afternoon, which, from its novelty to an 
American reader, I may, perhaps, mention with 
pardonable egotism. I was driving in the suburbs 
of London. The weather was as lovely as April. 
(There have been three entire, glorious and golden 
days here this week ! which must have strayed 
over from America.) Before me, at a turn of the 
road, I saw the scarlet outriders in advance of the 
royal carriage. My driver pulled up, and, as the 
open barouche and four passed, I instinctively lifted 
my hat, and involuntarily, but respectfully inclined 
my head — a token of instinctive homage, which Her 
Majesty and the Prince Consort most graciously 
acknowledged. At first I thought, perhaps, I had 
been a little audacious in my politeness ; but after 
all it was only the accidental exchange of the 
" Sovereign " for the " Crown " — or, somehow so, 
etc. 

" The rank is but the guinea's stamp^ 
The man's the gold for all that." 



152 SPARKS FKOM A LOCOMOTIVE; OE, 



Westminster Abbey. 

How Sleep the Brave — The Poet's Corner — Epitaphs — S. C. Hall's 
Lecture — The Hopeless Author of " The Pleasures of Hope" — 
His Funeral — A Voice from Heaven — Banishment of Childe 
Harold's Dust— St. Paul's— The Tombs of Nelson and WelUng- 
ton — Ruins. 

Mokley's Hotel, 

February^ 1859. 

Grand, gloomy, and sublimely sad are tlie awful 
impressions of Westminster Abbey. The very at- 
mosphere of the place is redolent of glory and the 
grave. It literally smells of death ; and a damp, 
cold sensation penetrates one's very bones on en- 
tering the sacred cloister. The building is vast and 
sombre, at once a pantheon and a mausoleum. Here 
the royal heads of England receive their crowns ; 
and here sleep the ashes of her heroes of the pen 
and sword ; or, in the words of Waller, in his fine 
description of the antique pile : 

" It gives them crowns, and does their ashes keep ; 
There, made like gods — like mortals there they sleep ; 
Making the circle of their reign complete — 
These suns of Empire, where they rise and set." 



LIFE AND LIBEKTT IN EUKOPE. 163 

The monuments and their inscriptions awaken the 
most bewildering associations. What a grand ga- 
thering of kings — from Edward the Confessor to 
George the Second ! "What a solemn convocation 
of priests and poets ; of philosophers and statesmen ; 
of soldiers, sculptors, actors, and orators! 'The 
ghostly procession of a thousand years passes before 
ns in all its regal pomp and gloomy magnificence ! 
The glittering coronation chair, the velvet-covered 
catafalque, move slowly by to the solemn music of 
the pealing organ and the swelling choir. 

Westminster Abbey was founded by the Saxon 
King, Sebert, in the year 610. It was destroyed 
by the Danes, and rebuilt by Edgar in 958. The 
towers were added by Sir Christopher Wren. Dur- 
ing the civil wars the Yandal Puritans used the 
Abbey for barracks, smashing windows and muti- 
lating statues, altars, tombs, etc., in the most icono- 
clastic manner. Henry YII.'s chapel is the most 
curious and beautiful portion of the building ; but 
the "Poet's Corner" is the most attractive. The 
pavement here is worn with the feet of poet-loving 
pilgrims; and at all hours of the day we find 
men with uncovered heads and hushed voices 
gazing on the marble memorials that mark the 
spots where sleep the Great High Priests of 
Song — 



154: SPAEKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OR, 

" Who sink to rest 
By all the peo'pWs wishes blest." 

Here are the remains of "rare Ben Jonson," of 
John Milton, Thomas Gray, Matthew Prior, Geoffrey 
Chancer, the father of English poetry, and a Collec- 
tor of Customs ; Abraham Cowley, John Dryden, 
John Gay, author of the " Beggar's Opera," who 
wrote his own epitaph — 

" Life is a jest, and all things show it — 
I thought so once, but now I know it. 

James Thomson, Oliver Goldsmith, Joseph Addi- 
son, Garrick, Sheridan, Southey, Congreve, Words- 
worth, Campbell, Shakspeare. The latter monu- 
ment presents an admirable statue of the poet lean- 
ing on a pillar, whereon rests a scroll, with an in- 
scription from the " Tempest" — 

" The cloud-capt towers, the gorgeous palaces," etc. 

The pedestal of the tomb is decorated with the 
crowned heads of Henry Y., Richard H., and 
Queen Elizabeth. But these effigies of dead 
royalty are poor tributes to the memory of the im- 
mortal bard compared with the undying lines of 
Milton— 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 155 

"Dear son of Memory, great heir of Fame! — 
What need'st thou such weak witness of thy name ? 
Thou, in our wonder and astonishment 
Hast built thyself a life-long monument. 

And so sepulchred, in such pomp dost He, 
That kings for such a tomb would wish to die." 

The tomb of Thomas Campbell is also sur- 
mounted bj an excellent statue of the noble 
sleeper beneath ; and, like Shakspeare, the inscrip- 
tion upon the tablet is a quotation from his own 
prophetic lines : 

" His spirit shall return to Him 
Who gave its heavenly spark," etc. 

I had the pleasure, the other evening, of listening 
to Mr. S. C. Hall's lecture on the " Authors of the 
Age," and after giving sketches of Lamb, Hook, 
Hood, Hogg, and others, he gave a very interesting 
account of the life, death, and burial of Campbell, 
with whom the lecturer was associated for a time, 
as editor of the " Monthly Magazine." Mr. Hall, 
I thought, Avas needlessly severe in his criticisms 
upon the faults and foibles of the dead. He spoke 
of Campbell as a habitually intemperate man, 
and showed no mercy to Hook and Lamb. Camp- 



156 SPAEKS FKOM A LOCOMOTIVE; OE, 

bell wrote his " Pleasures of Hope " at the age of 
twenty-two; but, according to Mr. Plall, he lived 
and died a hopeless man, reminding one of the 
anecdote of the celebrated clown who, while keep- 
ing all Paris in a roar of merriment, called on 
a famous physician to get a prescription for the 
cure of melancholy. The physician, not knowing 
the name of the patient, recommended him to go 
and see the wit Grimaldi (himself) play. So Camp- 
bell seems to have delighted the world with " plea- 
sures" that he never knew himself. His funeral 
was one of the grandest ever witnessed in England. 
The noblest of the nobility were proud to serve as 
pall-bearers to him who sung the " Battle of the 
Baltic" and the "Mariners of England." The 
reverend poet Milman, read the service ; and when 
the coffin was lowered to its last resting-place, a 
Polish officer advanced from the crowd and 
sprinkled upon its lid a handful of earth from 
Kosciusko's grave. The effect was thrilling; but 
just at that moment, when the venerable Dean had 
pronounced the words: "I heard a voice from 
heaven," a clap of thunder shook the old abbey, 
and the sublime sentence could not be finished 
until the " voice from heaven " had ceased echoing 
through the lofty arches of the trembling minster. 
From the long catalogue of names which mark the 



LIFE AND LIBEETY IN ETJEOPE. 157 

slumbers of poetic ashes, one misses the name of 
Bjron, as the statue of Brutus was missed from 
the Koman procession. The dust of " Childe 
Harold" is not holy enough to rest in consecrated 
ground, and so he may not lie down in unconscious 
companionship with kings and queens for his final 
bedfellows. It may indicate a great want of taste, 
or a lamentable lack of posthumous ambition, but I 
cannot help confessing that I would rather my own 
worthless tegument should relapse into its original 
elemental dust in the quiet obscurity of some 
humble country churchyard; or, better yet, in 
some still more secluded spot known only to the 
few loving ones who would bring to it occasionally 
the tribute of a votive flower or a forgiving tear, 
than to repose beneath the pillared pomp of marble 
monuments in the poets', or prelates', or princes' 
corner of Westminster Abbey. 

From the royal cemetery to the stately cathedral 
the transition is not unnatural, although, perhaps, 
the order should be reversed. The dome of St. 
Paul's is a marvel of architectural symmetry and 
size. It swells in the air so vastly and so lightly 
that it seems to have been modelled on nothing less 
than the " brave o'erhanging firmament " itself. It 
is the work and the monument of Sir Christopher 
Wren, who, in the year 1723, was buried in the 



158 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OE, 

soiitli aisle, aged 91. He was thirty-fiye years in 
building it, and received for his services only £200 
a year, which sum the Duchess of Marlborough 
thought quite too little for being dragged up in a 
basket three or four times a week. The crypt of St. 
Paul's seems to have been consecrated as the tomb 
of painters. Here are the ashes of Sir Joshua Rey- 
nolds, of Opie, of Lawrence, of Barry, and of Yan 
Dyke. And here, also, in adjoining chambers, are 
the imposing sarcophagi of England's greatest he- 
roes, Wellington and ISTelson. Gas lights are kept 
burning on the four corners of the tombs ; but 
there is no "Promethean spark" that can relume 
the great lights that lie extinguished here. What 
a terrible radical is Death ! A few years of silent 
decay, of darkness and disintegration, and the 
mightiest and the loveliest return to undistinguish- 
able dust. For the last two days I have walked, as 
it were, upon the graves of kings, and priests, and 
poets, and heroes; and felt the utter frailty and 
feebleness of man, even in his mightiest estate. 
The ambition for power, for wealth, for fame — ^how 
poor it appears in the presence of the unheeding 
dead, who have exhausted all the honors and the 
glories of the earth ! !Now, what does it all mean ? 
Wherefore these 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 159 

" Temples, palaces, and piles stupendous, 
Of which the very ruins are tremendous !" 

To this hour the human race cannot explain itself — 
its origin, its object, or its destiny. I am here; 
you are there. A few facts, a few phenomena, we 
can discern and record ; and these we call history ; 
and from this we weave a sort of phantom philoso- 
phy. A few years hence, and some musing " cor- 
respondent" from the new world will linger lov- 
ingly over the tomb of Yictoria, to recall the mani- 
fold virtues, private and public, which adorn her 
life and decorate her reign. Or, it may be, that 
the eloquent prophecy of Macaulay will yet be ful- 
filled — when some "lonely traveller from ISTew 
Zealand shall pause upon the broken arches of 
London Eridge to sketch the ruins of St. Paul's." 
One can hardly realize the evanescent nature of 
ma.n until he has trodden in the footsteps of a thou- 
sand generations. In America everything is young 
and new. There has not yet been time for the moss 
to grow upon our gravestones. But here the world 
is old ; and the cities of the dead are more crowded 
than tte cities of the living. The ruins of ancient 
temples look like the milestones of Ages ; while 
the Past is perpetually overshadowing the Present. 
But I am unwittingly falling into grave reflections, 



160 SPAEKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OE, 

owing, I suppose, to the fact that I have been wan- 
dering among the tombs and communing with the 
dead. My next shall be a plunge into the varied 
life of London, for I have already seen something 
of it ''up-stairs, down-stairs, and in my lady's 
chamber." 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 161 



The British Museum, Etc. 

Preserved Trifles — Literary Curiosities — Madame Tussaud's 
Rooms — Startling Resemblances — Madame St. Amaranth — The 
Chamber of Horrors — President Buchanan — American Pano- 
ramas — Albert Smith — A Political Prediction. 

Mokley's Hotel, London, 

March — , 1859. 

I SAW, yesterday, among the marvellous collections 
of the British Museum, full files of the leading 
J^ew York journals, elegantly bound, affording a 
wonderful contrast to the little four by six inch 
volumes of the first newspaper ever printed. Surely 
an editor should be careful of what he writes; 
for here, preserved in " everlasting remembrance," 
his "leaders" (too often misleaders) will stare a 
blushing posterity in the face through all coming 
time. I little dreamed when penning hasty para- 
graphs for the " Evening Mirror," in Ann street, at 
the last minute before "going to press," that I might 
some day see every word scrupulously preserved in 
the archives of the British Museum. Such immor- 
tality of language should make us word-weavers 



162 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OR, 

pause and consider. It is like a phantom memory 
in tlie future world rising up to curse or bless us in 
the great Museum of Souls. So let us be as wary 
and as wise as we may. 

The British Museum, with its five hundred and 
sixty thousand volumes, is a stunning institution. 
The great dome, one hundred and forty feet in 
diameter, filled to the very apex with richly bound 
books, soars over us like an intellectual heaven. 
The " King's Library," three hundred feet in 
length, is a perfect wilderness of magnificent 
works ; but the " Autograph " and " Manuscript " 
room is most wonderful of all. Every king, queen, 
poet, statesman, artist, known in history, is re]3re- 
sented here in the original handwriting. Best of 
all, and carefully kept in a curtained glass-case, is 
the signature of William Shakspere ! (Henceforth 
I shall always spell it as he wrote it.) The auto- 
graph is appended to the deed of a house and lot, 
bought on one day and mortgaged the next, a 
financiering operation, indicating that even the 
king of poets was occasionally " hard up." The 
Museum paid three hundred guineas for the signa- 
ture. Here is, also, the original contract between 
John Milton and his publishers, in which they 
stipulate to pay five pounds each for the first, 
second and third editions of " Paradise Lost." But 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN ETJEOPE. 163 

the curiosities of the Museum are oYerwhelming to 
think of — much more so is an attempt to describe 
them. I dare not venture into the vast world of 
wonders in nature, art and science. Here is the 
first specimen of the art of printing, the first 
edition of the " King James " and the " Mazarine " 
Bibles ; and the first and last of almost everything 
the world has ever produced in the way of inven- 
tion, of discovery, and of philosophy. And yet, in 
all this infinity of thought and theory, of code and 
creed, of science and psychology, what is there to 
explain the meaning and the mystery of life? 
"What — except the beautiful balm distilled from the 
sweet flower-words which fell from the lips of Love 
in the Sermon on the Mount : 

" To' sooth a passion or a pang 
Entailed on human hearts !" 

The British Museum employs one hundred and 
fifty men in its various departments ; and the gov- 
ernment is annually making liberal appropriations 
for the enlargement of its accommodations, and the 
increase of its collections. A recent order has been 
given for a copy of every edition of " Uncle Tom's 
Cabin," that has yet appeared, in all the various 
languages of the world, which will form a curious 
library of no inconsiderable dimensions. 



164: SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OE, 

With the " bump of wonder " still active, let us 
leave the Huseuin for an exhibition scarcely less 
extraordinary; and still more startling. Madame 
Tussaud's Kooms, in Portman Square, are among 
the marvels of London. The rooms are spacious 
and splendid ; and the lifelike figures and groups in 
wax number nearly four hundred. So perfect are 
these figures in form, expression and drapery, that 
I felt for some time guilty of rudeness, in gazing at 
eyes which almost seemed to look into mine, and 
on lips that reflected an almost living smile. The 
sensation is indescribable. The virtuous Victoria, 
and the beautiful Eugenie seem to invite some 
palpable, or audible demonstration of admiration ; 
while the respectable old gentleman who slowly 
turns his head and stares through his spectacles 
compels an involuntary motion and recognition. 
But strangest, loveliest, and most fearful of all, is the 
reclining form of the brave and beautiful Madame 
St. Amaranth, who chose the safe alternative of the 
grave rather than dishonor at the hands of Robes- 
pierre. After the death of her husband, a colonel 
in the body-guard of Louis XYL, at the age of 
twenty-two, the loveliest lady in France was hur- 
ried into eternity by the tyrant of the " Eeign of 
Terror" — a martyr to the virtue which nothing 
could overcome — ^faithful to a love which even 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUEOPE. 165 

death could not discourage. Tliere she lies on her 
velvet covered couch, with a black lace veil partly 
concealing her sweet face, the soft blonde ringlets 
clustering like tendrils around her fair neck, and, 
while gazing with emotions of tenderest admira- 
tion upon the angelic sleeper, we start with almost 
breathless wonder to see the beautiful bosom rise 
and fall as gently and as regularly as the breast of 
a sleeping infant ! 

" Oh, it is fearful, thus to see, 
A lady so richly clad as she — 
Beautiful exceedingly !" 

Among the relics shown are the original knife 
and handle used in the decapitation of Marie An- 
toinette, Louis XYI., the Duke of Orleans, and 
Robespierre; the imperial carriage of ISTapoleon, 
taken from the field of Waterloo ; and the carriage 
used by the caged emperor at St. Helena ; the coat 
worn by iJ^Telson at the battle of the Nile ; a piece 
of the Cloth of Gold, from the field of that name ; 
the shirt worn by Henry lY. of France when stab- 
bed by Ravaillac, with the blood stains still distinct 
— a relic for which Charles X. offered two hundred 
guineas ; etc., etc., etc. 

The "Chamber of Horrors" contains life-like 
effigies of all the most celebrated murderers and 



166 SPAEKS FEOM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OE, 

criminals, from Palmer the poisoner to Paul the 
swindler. And here, too, are Orsini, Pierri, 
Fieschi, Courvoisier, Maria Manning, etc., etc. 
Madeline Smith was here for a time ; but, at the 
very just remonstrance of her family, the figure has 
been removed. This "chamber," where one may 
" sup full of horrors," also contains a fac-simile of 
the much abused "guillotine," a far less hideous 
and inhuman instrument of death than our popular 
Christian gallows ! 

On passing out, I was suddenly confronted by 
His Excellency President Buchanan, who seemed 
about to oiFer his hand and ask the " news from 
Tammany Hall." But the artist has not done full 
justice to the bachelor occupant of the " White 
House." He has taken the artistic liberty of 
placing the President's head erect upon his 
shoulders. One misses that familiar and confiding 
" crook of the neck," which the " Georgia Widow " 
and other ambitious spinsters consider so particu- 
larly charming in Mr. Buchanan. 

American Panoramas are now quite the rage in 
London. The most attractive are the Mammoth 
Cave, with views of the ^Natural Bridge and 
Niagara Falls. A few evenings since, the famous 
" Yictoria Bridge " across the St. Lawrence, at 
Montreal, was added ; and a private view, followed 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 167 

by a supper, given to the Press. The bridge, now 
nearly finished, has cost nearly seven millions of 
dollars, and is one of the architectural wonders of 
the world. It contains the same amount of iron 
(12,000 tons) that has been used in the construction 
of the " Great Eastern." At the supper I had the 
pleasure of meeting many of the leading lights of 
the London Press, and of listening to some very 
friendly and fraternal speeches. Among the guests 
were Sir Cusack Roney, one of the most active 
Directors of the " Grand Trunk Railway ;" Augus- 
tus Sala, of " Due JSTorth " notoriety ; the Brothers 
Brough, of burlesque celebrity ; Mr. Holt, of the 
'' Morning E'ews," etc., etc. The Queen was 
toasted first ; then came, successively, the American 
President and the American Press, which were 
drank with all the honors. It was, altogether, a 
glorious and a jolly gathering; and, of course, the 
company wouldn't " go home till morning." 

Albert Smith I have not yet seen, although we 
have been playing " cards " into each other's hands 
for the last three weeks. It seems as if some per- 
sons were doomed never to meet ; as others are 
doomed never to part. But to-day I have received 
the following characteristic note, from which I 
venture to quote an extract as a specimen of the 
witty writer's cordial hospitality, and pleasant Ion- 



168 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OR, 

homie^ wliich will keep me a day or two longer from 
Paris ; 

" You must give me the pleasure of your company at a din- 
ner ci la Chinoise^ here, on Thursday next, at half-past 5 
sharp. There will be two nice fellows and two pretty women 
to meet you. I have had such trouble in getting them 
together, that, having succeeded, I hope (if you can) you will 
try and throw over anj prior engagement. We are all in the 
literary line," etc. 

As an evidence of the popularity of Mr. Smith's 
Chinese entertainment, I may mention that after 
giving it every night (Sunday excepted) and two 
or three afternoons in each week, for months, it is 
still necessary to engage seats a day or two in 
advance. 

And so, both France and Austria are going to 
evacuate Italy ! And what then ? There will be 
an insurrection in Italy, when Louis Najpoleon will 
ste^ in and settle the difficulty ! The great little 
emperor is playing a deep game. He is the Paul 
Morphy among the political chess-players of 
Europe. 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUEOPE. 169 



Life and Death. 

A Sad Bereavement — A Father's Sorrow — Christian Sympathy — 
Covent Garden Theatre — " The Undying One "—The Queen and 
Prince Consort — Royal Jealousy — Victoria as Wife — The Pynes 
and Harrison — Mr. and Mrs. Barney Williams — Albert Smith- 
Mr. and Mrs. Howard Paul — Government Reform — Sir Samuel 
Cunard. 

Morlet's Hotel, London, 

March, 1859. 

The weather continues marvellously fine. Such a 
week of golden days, at this season of the year, is 
almost Tinprecedented in London. The grass is 
growing ; the birds are singing ; the primroses are 
gushing and blushing ; and Hyde Park is as gay as 
a garden. But what a mockery seems all this out- 
ward splendor to one whose heart is darkened by 
the shadow of death ! Among a pile of notes on 
my breakfast-table, there is one with a black bor- 
der announcing the sudden departure from earth of 
an intimate friend in America ; and, a little later in 
the same day, another mournful letter informs me 
that " Eosa, the beloved daughter of Charles Mac- 

8 



170 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OR, 

kay, died at ]N'aples on the 26th of February." She 
was one of the loveliest and most accomplished 
girls in England ; .thoronghly educated ; a fine lin- 
guist ; an exquisite musician^ and of the rarest per- 
sonal beauty. A few months ago, she left home, 
accompanied by her mother, to realize the dream 
of her life — a winter in Italy. Reaching I^aples, 
she died, of a gastric fever, after a few days' illness, 
at the age of nineteen. 

" So fades the lovely blooming flower, 
Frail smiling solace of an hour ; 
So soon our transient comforts fly ; 
And pleasures only bloom to die." 

Her father's grief can only be understood by 
those who, with a parent's and a poet's sensibility, 
have seen the warm, life-idols of their hearts sud- 
denly changed to cold, insensate clay, and hidden for- 
ever from their sight. In such a sorrow the sympa- 
thy of friends only aggravates the grief it seeks to 
assuage ; and yet, it is beautiful to see how sin- 
cerely and universally these noble, Christian-hearted 
English people obey, not only the injunctions of 
Scripture, but the stronger promptings of nature, 
" to weep with those who weep." Dr. Mackay's 
table is filled with notes of condolence, which he 
cannot yet read, from his brother poets, and jour- 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUEOPE. 171 

nalistSj and from friends in all ranks of life, who 
kindly, but vainly, endeavor to convey words of 
comfort to his bleeding heart. He has two child- 
ren living; but she was his only daughter — ^the 
light of his eye — the pet of his love ; and her death 
is the first great sorrow that has darkened his 
household and his heart. 

To lighten the sombre and oppressive death-cloud 
that had hung oyer me so heavily during the day, 
I went to the Covent Garden Opera in the evening, 
cheered by the sweet sunshine of "The Undying 
One," the beautiful Byron in petticoats, the magni- 
ficent Mrs. iN'orton. The Opera was Wallace's 
" Maritana." The immense theatre was nearly 
filled. The queen, the Prince Consort, and suite, 
were present, in the box directly opposite mine. 
(And I should here add a word of thanks for the 
hospitality of the managers of several of the leading 
theatres, who have placed " at my disposition," as 
they say in Spain, a " number one " private box, 
during my stay in London.) On the entrance of 
her majesty there w^as no demonstration on the 
part of the audience or the artists. She was quite 
plainly dressed, m modestly low-neck and short- 
sleeves, with a couple of pink roses in her hair; 
and she took her seat more quietly than most ladies 
of fashion, who enter the opera house in a blaze of 



172 SPAUKS FEOM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OE, 

jewelry, or^'imcrackeiy. Prince Albert was seated 
on the right, and next him the three Maids of 
Honor filled the remaining front seats. The three 
gentlemen attendants occupied positions directly 
behind the royal party, but did not maintain the 
tedious and absurd etiquette of standing during 
the performance. The queen is decidedly fond of 
theatrical entertainments, and almost every night 
gives one of the theatres the benefit of her pre- 
sence ; for the rumor that her majesty will appear 
on any particular evening is quite sufiicient to fill 
the house to overflowing. She generally lets the 
manager know of her intention to honor him, in the 
morning, sometimes a day or two previous ; and he 
takes good care to let the fact be known. But it is 
the queen's particular wish that her presence should 
be unnoted by any signs of applause; and her im- 
patience of lorgnettes is so well understood, that 
few well-bred people ever level their glasses at the 
royal box, which, by the way, at the Covent Gar- 
den, has not even the sign of the crown to distin- 
guish it from any other. It is simply double the 
ordinary size, with a nice withdrawing-room in the 
rear. The queen and the prince both seemed to 
take a lively interest in the performance, follow- 
ing the singers through the libretto ; but, at the 
same time, scanning, not only the artists, but the 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 1T3 

occupants of the boxes pretty closely through their 
lorgnettes. It is a poor rule that don't work both 
ways ; and why should not the cat look at the 
queen, as well as the queen at the cat ! " They 
say" that her majesty is a little jealous of Prince 
Albert ; but it is probably the jealousy arising from 
love, not from fear, a distinction with a very great 
difference. There can be no absolute and infinite 
love without what is called jealousy. It is the 
shadow accompanying the sunshine. But this feel- 
ing bears no relationship to that " green-eyed mon- 
ster," who feeds on suspicion and fear ; who '' dotes 
yet doubts ;" and whose very love is " as cruel as 
the grave." But I am straying from the opera into 
an essay. The queen has led me off ; for I noticed 
when the prince chatted and laughed with the 
honorable, but by no means dangerously beautiful, 
" Maid," who sat beside him, his wife invariably 
leaned toward them, to catch the joke and join in 
the laugh. Yictoria is, beyond all question, a 
mod^l wife and mother, as well as a most virtuous 
and gracious queen. Her subjects love her so well 
that no radical or republican wit dares -to caricature 
or satirize her. Quite different is it with Prince 
Albert, who is often Punched^ when the dear little 
queen says, in her wife-like affectionateness — " Why 
dorCt they ridicule me instead /" 



174 SPARKS FEOM A LOCOMOTIVE; OE, 

The opera went smoothly; Misses Louisa and 
Snsan Pjne and Mr. Harrison being the stars of the 
evening. These artists have much improved, in 
eyery respect, since their visit to America. They 
are yery popnlar. Miss Louisa Pyne is a great 
favorite of the queen, and is often invited to sing at 
the Palace. The 'New Covent Garden Theatre 
looks much larger, and is far better for seeing and 
hearing than our ISTew York Academy of Music. 
It is principally lighted by an immense crystal 
chandelier ; but the red background, the old tradi- 
tional, theatrical red, gives the interior a dingy, 
gloomy apjjearance. The theory is, to throw all 
the hrightness on the stage, leaving the auditorium 
in a sort of misty moonlight. 

A word touching Mr. and Mrs. Barney Williams^ 
and their success in England, will not be unaccept- 
able to their numerous friends and admirers in 
America. They have this week opened the 
" Lyceum ;" and, it is needless to add, are drawing 
crowded houses. Mrs. Williams is unquestionably 
the most attractive actress on the London stage. 
She has grown stouter and handsome during her 
three years of hard work in England ; and in her 
remarkable little piece — " An Hour in Seville," in 
which she displays extraordinary versatility, she is 
generally considered as the most bewitching beauty 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 175 

on the boards. As an English Lord, a French 
Count, an Italian Prima Donna, a Yankee girl, 
etc., etc., her dressing, dancing, acting, and singing 
are inimitable. Bnt a few years ago, we remember 
her as " the little Miss Wray," of the Bowery 
Theatre, living with her mother in Pearl street, 
near Broadway, where she was born ; and now we 
find her the mistress of a fine mansion in Picca- 
dilly, Hyde Park, making her thousand dollars a 
week, by an hour's appearance on the stage ; while 
her clever husband as " Bagged Pat," or some 
other " broth of a boy," is bagging the dimes, and 
investing largely in Fifth Avenue lots. Mr. and 
Mrs. Williams will return to the States in August, 
when, after " starring it " a while in the new bril- 
liancy of their European lustre, they will probably 
retire to take their " O. cum dig." in a palace on 
the Central Park. A long and pleasant evening to 
the "Irish Boy" and his "Yankee Gal." Tlie 
queen has been to see them four times within the 
month. 

Albert Smith's Chinese entertainment is, to use 
his own phrase, one of the things to be " done." It 
is a panoramic view of the journey from South- 
ampton to Hong Kong, accompanied by a rattling 
rat-a-plan sort of description which keeps the audi- 
ence in good humor, from beginning to end. With 



176 SPAKKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OR, 

tlie exception of some seven montlis these enter- 
tainments have been given with unabated success 
for over eight years. The Egyptian Hall is now 
converted into a Museum of Chinese curiosities; 
and the side saloon in which we dined yesterday 
" a la Ghinoise " contains the two identical crosses, 
upon which, during the late rebellion, seventy 
thousand men were cut to pieces. Mr. Dickens 
has just written a private letter to Mr. Smith, beg- 
ging him to remove the bloody symbols, but yester- 
day they served as " skeletons at the feast." I 
ought to add that the dinner a la Ghinoise did not 
consist of rice and rats. It was entirely Christian 
— soup, sole, beef-steak pie, and all. Of the men- 
tionables present there were Mr. and Mrs. Edmond 
Gates (the Gates vs. Thackeray), and pretty little 
Miss ILqqIj^ fiancee of the host, and a daughter of 
the Keeleys. From the dining saloon the company 
" retired " to the Lecture Room, in which, as usual, 
every seat was occupied. Mr. Smith intends to 
visit the United States ; but not until his China has 
exhausted London, a period most indefinitely re- 
mote. 

Mr. and Mrs. Howard Paul are still doing their 
" Patchwork " at St. James' Hall, which has run 
for over one thousand nights ! It is a clever med- . 
ley of acting and singing ; and is filling the pockets 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 177 

of the proprietor. Mrs. Paul's imitation of Sims 
Reeves is more than admirable ; it is wonderful. 
It is said by some to be better than the original. 
Mr. Paul is a Philadelphia boy, and his talented 
wife was Miss Featherstone of London. They, too, 
are looking toward the United States, just for the 
sake of a little variety, although they play to 
crowded houses five evenings and two afternoons 
in every week. 

The Government Keform Bill more than satisfies 
the conservatives, but does not at all suit the radi- 
cals. But I will avoid politics. At a Reform 
meeting in Liverpool the other evening, " Young 
America Train" made an admirable speech, in 
which he created something of a sensation by stat- 
ing that the tariff' on Atlantic letters amounted to 
about eighteen thousand dollars per ton ! This is 
taxing the luxury of correspondence with a ven- 
geance. Cheap ocean postage is to be one of the 
rallying cries of the radical reformers in Great 
Britain ; and it is hoped it will be heartily 
responded to on the American side of the water. 

Mr. Samuel Cunard, of the Cunard line, has just 
been made a baronet, an honor eminently deserved, 
and in which everybody rejoices. 



8* 



178 SPARKS FKOM A LOCOMOTIVE *, OE, 



A Word about the Fine Arts. 

Princely Patronage — Beautiful Pictures — Costly Collections — The 
Belle Jardiniere— A Fifty Thousand Dollar Raffaelle— The 
Dusseldorf Gallery, 

London, March, 1859. 

Fondness for the Fine Arts, real or affected, is a 
marked characteristic of the higher circles of Eng- 
lish society. The millionaire nobleman does not 
spend all his money on horses and honnds ; Jior on 
the wines and viands of his snmptuons entertain- 
ments. The picture gallery is the glory of his 
mansion, both in town and country ; and, as a gene- 
ral rule, the larger his income the more magnificent 
are the paintings which adorn his walls, and the 
costlier the statues which meet you at every turn 
of the stairs. If England cannot claim peculiar 
distinction as the birthplace of artists, her noble- 
men may justly claim to be ranked among the 
most munificent patrons of the arts. The Eoyal 
Academy of London may not be equal to the Im- 
perial Louvre of Paris ; but in England, the master- 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 179 

pieces of art, instead of being concentrated in a 
gallery of a mile or two in length, are lining the 
walls of every palace and castle in the kingdom. 
This may not be as beneficial to the pnblic ; but 
the greater opportunity afforded for the study of 
art in private collections, makes everybody, more 
or less, a connoisseur, who has access to the best so- 
ciety. The dining-room of the English nobleman is a 
museum of art. And not only noblemen, but every 
gentleman of means considers it a sine qua non to 
adorn his walls with pleasing pictures. It is a part 
of the entertainment to which the guest is invited. 
The breakfast-room of the poet Monckton Milnes ; 
the dining-room of Mr. William Stirling, author of 
the "History of Spanish Painting," and of the 
" Cloister Life of Charles Y. ;" the parlors of the 
Hon. Mrs. l^orton ; the library of the Marquis of 
Lansdowne, etc., etc., are all filled with rich and 
rare paintings, affording a perpetual feast for the 
eye, and a constant stimulus to conversation. The 
subject maybe a beautiful woman; a handsome 
horse ; an angelic child ; a poetic landscape, or the 
portrait of some genius, or hero, or beauty, whose 
very name unlocks the treasury of unending remi- 
niscences. There they are, to please at once the 
eye, the imagination, and the memory. And, in 
the midst of some of the most sumptuous dinners 



180 SPARKS FKOM A LOCOMOTIVE; OK, 

here, in London, I have felt like Dr. Johnson, when, 
seated opposite a beautiful woman at table, he de- 
clared that, ^'intead of feasting his stomach he 
could only feast his eyes." 

The prices paid in London for gems of art are 
almost incredible. I do not propose, however, to 
go into particulars touching these most pardonable 
extravagances. But let me suggest to the numer- 
ous patrons of the American '' Cosmopolitan Art 
Association," that nothing commends a gentleman 
more highly to the "distinguished consideration" 
of tlie English Tiaut ton than a knowledge and love 
of art. It is taken as an evidence of a refined taste, 
of a genial nature, and of general good manners. 
For instance, a gentleman in London invites you to 
breakfast or dine with him, and you are ushered 
into a room full of choice paintings and statuary, 
which have cost him, it may be, a hundred thousand 
dollars ; or even five times that amount ! He ex- 
pects from his guest, at least, something of intelli- 
gent admiration. Imagine his very natural disgust 
for the boor, who looks with an equal lack of emotion 
upon a rich Raifaelle, or a panel of picture paper ! 
If the " Cosmopolitan Art Journal," by its criti- 
cisms and illustrations of art, shall succeed in cre- 
ating in America a taste for fine paintings, fine 
statuary, fine architecture, and for fine things gene- 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN KUEOPE. 181 

rally, it will accomplish a work of refinement tliat 
cannot fail to be of great public benefit, as well as 
a special blessing to the nascent art-genins of the 
country. 

As an interesting item of art intelligence, I will 
add the following description of a beautiful gem, 
which I have been " making love to " in the studio 
of our countryman, Mr. Minor K. Kellogg : 

The picture of the " Belle Jardiniere," by Kaphael, 
in Mr. Kellogg's possession, has attracted the seri- 
ous attention of connoisseurs ever since it came into 
his hands, and is destined to create a greater sensa- 
tion as its merits become known. As there is 
another picture of the same subject in the Museum 
of the Louvre, the question is now being discussed 
as to its originality, and the proofs called for. It 
seems that there is no authentic history yet found 
of Eaphael's hsiYmg painted this subject. The only 
knowledge we have is that he made drawings for 
it, and that they exist. Mr. Kellogg has been 
occupied, more or less, during the last four years, in 
researches on this interesting subject, and has accu- 
mulated a mass of evidence of the most valuable 
kind, which, I believe, he intends soon to publish, 
Tlie Jardiniere in Mr. Kellogg's collection, is so 
different in many important points of design, color, 
and accessories, from that in the Louvre, and its 



182 SPARKS FKOM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OR, 

merits are in all respects" so mucti more like those 
peculiar to Raphael, that they at once throw a 
doubt on the authenticity of that in the Louvre 
so long attributed to him. Whatever may be the 
ultimate decision regarding these two pictures, Mr. 
Kellogg has had the boldness to hold that the one 
he has purchased is an original, and to keep it in 
Paris, almost alongside that in the Louvre, for 
nearly four years, open to the inspection of the 
world. Thus far it has not been openly questioned 
even by those connoisseurs who have long been 
prejudiced in favor of the Louvre picture. Count 
de Morny obtained the privilege of the Director of 
the Louvre to exhibit it alongside the one in the 
Museum, and to allow Mr. Kellogg a whole day to 
himself for this purpose. 

Mr. Kellogg has now taken up his residence in 
London, and already his Jardiniere has been visited 
by some of the most important critics and noble 
amateurs of the Fine Arts, and we shall soon hear 
what decision will be passed upon the judgment of 
Mr. Kellogg, whose fearlessness seems justly to rest 
upon long and sincere study of the old masters in 
Italy, and his own practical experience in Art. 

The price of the picture ^^ fifty thousand dollars; 
and already the Bishop of Oxford, and other emi- 
nent prelates and connoisseurs, have their eyes on 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 183 

it. The face of the Yirgin, and the flesh of the 
infants John and Jesus, are wonderfully fine — ^the 
very quintessence of human dust. 

But after seeing many of the best pictures in 
England, I am constrained to assert that there are 
comparatively few works, of the modern school, 
superior to the gems of our ISTew York " Dusseldorf 
Gallery," which would bring more than its weight 
in gold in London. 1 trust, however, that so rich 
a collection of Art will n^ver be permitted to leave 
the country. What a pity that the city, instead of 
wasting money on public " receptions," and other 
swindling humbugs, would not buy it, and throw it 
open to free exhibition. But a word to the unwise 
is insufficient, and so the " Cosmopolitan Associa- 
tion" must persevere in its noble work. 



184 SPAEKS FKOM A LOCOMOTIVE; OK, 



Metropolitan Misery. 

The London Police — A Dark Picture — Eighty Thousand Traviatas — 
The Sham Philanthropy of Exeter Hall — Something worse than 
Slavery in America — The Theatre — Chippendale — Charles Kean — 
Anna Bishop — Madame Pico — The Royal London Yacht Glub — 
Honorary Members. 

Moklet's Hotel, 

March — , 1859. 

The present population of London is estimated at 
nearly three million of inhabitants. It is only by 
driving or, better still, by walking throngli streets 
running in one direction for ten or fifteen miles that 
we can form any just estimate of the numerical and 
topographical vastness of this monstrous metropolis. 
And yet it is a well-cleaned, well-regulated, and 
well-governed city. The eight thousand policemen 
scattered all over it are met at all hours of the day 
and night, ready to give prompt and polite answers 
to all proper questions. They are generally full- 
sized men ; and, in their respectable uniform dress, 
make a fine and formidable appearance. They 
have their armories, where they are regularly 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 185 

drilled in the use of arms; but, ordinarilj, they 
carry no sign of a weapon. The " police beat " ex- 
tends to a radius of about fifteen miles from Char- 
ing Cross, making a circumference of ninety miles, 
and including an area of seven hundred square 
miles. The wages are from 2s. to 3s. (50 to 75 
cents) a day; and this pittance commands the 
severe services of young, robust, respectable men ! ^^ 
The professional thieves in London are estimated at 
six thousand, the beggars at fifteen thousand (two- 
thirds Irish) and the " women of the town" at eighty 
thousand/ Among the latter class of victims of 
sin and society I believe there is more real suffering 
in London in one week than in all the United 
States in a year. And yet, the sham philanthropy 
of " Exeter Hall " pours out a perpetual torrent of 
lachrymose sympathy for the imaginary woes of 
fictitious " Topsys " and fugitive " Uncle Toms ;" 
while this awful array of wronged and wretched 
women is parading nightly before its doors! In 
the city of London the excess of females over males 
is estimated at one hundred and sixty thousand. If ^^ 
to this we add the number, say one hundred and 
fifty thousand of men unmarried, we find an aggre- 
gate of THREE HUNDRED AND TEN THOUSAND of 

nnwedded, unprotected, and generally unsupported ^ 

females ! How can they live ! What shall 



186 SPAKKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OR, 

be done for them, or with them ? Some will fight 
starvation with the needle ; others will tend shop ; 
some will "go out to service;" others will find 
work in manufactories; but still the city census 
tells us that no less than eighty thousand women 
are driven by passion or want of bread, into the 
terrible traffic of prostitution. For a while, before 
their freshness fades or their forms wither, these 
sad "women of pleasure " (what a mockery to call 
them so !) may glitter in tinsel gaiety in the mad 
(b dance of the Argyle Eooms, or the Holborn Casinos ; 
but, with the first week of sickness, or the first 
wrinkle of age, they are driven to the streets, to the 
pawnbrokers ; and then, alas ! from under the dark 
arch of the Bridge of Sighs : 

" One more unfortunate, 
Weary of breath, 
• Rashly importunate 

Leaps to her death. 
* m * ^ 

Oh, it was pitiful — 
Near a whole city full ; 
Home she had none !" 

The " Haymarket," from twilight to daylight, 

swarms with these miserable angels of darkness, in 

^ all conditions of attire, from the gaudiest satins to 

the wretchedest rags; assuming every variety of 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUKOPE, 187 

manner, from the most bashful sentiment alism to 
the most brazen obscenity ; and in all stages of 
tipsiness, from the loquacious exhilaration of " bit- 
ter beer " to the maudlin intoxication of " gin and 
sugar." They will beg, weep, entreat, implore for 
money, or a drink, in every possible tone of seduc- 
tion, and with the promise of every conceivable 
blessing in return. Failing to extort either, they 
will pray for the privilege of walking a block with 
you, to tell you how they dare not, cannot go home 
without money, to pay their daily or weekly rent. 
Ah ! what terrible tales they relate ; what awful 
tragedies they play, themselves being the heroines. 
In the gaudy glare of the " Argyle Rooms," or at 
the more aristocratic " Mott's," one sees these poor 
Tramatas of real life in both the earlier and later 
scones of the fatal drama. Here is the spring 
chicken of fifteen, with a look of innocence still lin- 
gering about her — the faint blush of retreating virtue ; 
and here, too, the carefully rouged cheek of the cour- 
tesan of forty, with death in her eye and contamina* 
tion in her touch. It is altogether a sad exhibition ; 
the most melancholy spectacle the world can show, 
exciting emotions of disgust and pity, the latter be- 
ing the prevailing, and, I doubt not, the proper one. 
The evil cannot be eradicated in the present condi- 
tion of society. It must he recognized and regu- 



If 



188 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OR, 

lated. It is no use to legislate or to preach against 
the enormous sin of prostitution. These three 
hundred thousand women in London, with no hand 
to support them, must live ; and their necessities, 
internal and external, will be obeyed ; or, in the 
popular parlance of the pulpit, they will yield to 
temptations from within and from without. In the 
meantime, let me remind the noisy negro sympa- 
thizers of " Exeter Hall " that these eighty thousand 
white female slaves of Poverty and Passion, in the 
city of London, must and will live; while "the 
vengeance due for all their wrongs " will yet appear 
in the shape of some terrible ITemesis that will 
shake the social organism of the city to its centre. 
Oh ! for one year's income of the Bishop of London 
to pay a week's rent in advance for these eighty 
thousand Magdalens, and thus afford the "poor 
sinners " a holiday for rest, and a little leisure for 
repentance ! 

The theatres of London are numerous, and gene- 
rally well attended ; but I have seen nothing yet in 
the shape of a playhouse that surpasses the E'ew 
York "Academy of Music." The " Princess" and 
the " Hay market " are not larger than " Wallack's," 
and they are far less brilliant ; and yet Charles Kean 
manages to make money at the one, and Buckstone 
at the other. The "Haymarket" seems to be 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUEOPE. 189 

an especial favorite with the Queen, who pays £250 
a year for her box ; and her Majesty is a frequent 
attendant. Just now, Tom Taylor's "Unequal 
Match" is having a great run at the "Haymarket," 
and old Chippendale's familiar face and excellent 
acting make a IsTew Yorker feel quite at home there. 
Charles Kfean draws crowded houses every night, 
the present being his " farewell season." He gets 
up historical pieces with great elaborateness, and 
both himself and his much the "better-half" 
(Ellen Tree) look and act as well as they did at the 
" Old Park " fifteen years ago. The '*' Christmas 
Pantomimes" are not yet withdrawn. They are 
most magnificent, melo-dramatic exhibitions, full 
of dancing fairies in very brief petticoats and most 
delusive hose. 

But there is, literally, no end to the public 
amusements of London. Among the few that I am 
sorry to have missed, was a concert given the other 
evening by Madame Anna Bishop, who has recently 
added Shultz to her name by marrying a gentleman 
originally from ISTew York, but for the last ten 
years a resident of California. Madame looks quite 
as well and handsome as she did before going 
through with her trials in California, and her 
triumphs in Australia and South America. Her 
concert was crowded, and the press of London are 



190 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OR, 

unanimous and enthusiastic in lier praise. At her 
neat little cottage the other evening in Camden 
Town, I had the pleasure of hearing Madame 
Bishop sing duets with Signora Pico, who has lost 
none of her " pinguiditj ;" with Herr Mengis, favo- 
rably known in America ; and with her own daugh- 
ter, a sweet girl of twenty — one of " the twins " that 
we heard so much of at the time of the mother's 
Jiegira. The other twin is a fine-looking young 
man, who seems to be very fond of his mother. 
The whole family intend going to the United States 
to settle in the course of the coming summer. 
Signora Pico sings better than ever; and is very 
anxious to see again her " dear IS^ew York." She 
would still be a favorite star at the Academy, espe- 
cially in her great role of Orsini in the Borgia. This 
evening I had the pleasure of dining with the 
"Koyal London Yacht Club," of which Andrew 
Arcedeckne, Esq., so well known in America, is 
Commodore. The Club consists of some six hun- 
dred members of the right stamp, over a hundred 
of whom are owmers of yachts. The meeting to-day 
was for the election of Yice-Commodore, which 
resulted in the unanimous choice of Mr. Thomas 
Broadwood, Sen., of the famous London pianoforte 
manufactory. Tlie dinner, plain and substantial, 
was followed by " speeches, songs, and sentiments." 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUEOPE. 191 

Among the "honorary members" of the Club, I 
noticed the names of ]^. Bloodgood, E. A. Stevens, 
Cornelius Grinnell, William Edgar, and J. Gordon 
Bennett, Jun., of the 'New York Yacht Club. It is 
just possible that some fine breezy summer morn- 
ing the London Royal Yacht Club may spread its 
white wings for a friendly visit to the " birds of the 
same feather in Kew York." And then, won't 
there be a time ! 



192 ' SPARKS FKOM A LOCOMOTIVE; OE, 



Parks, Palaces, Banks and Clubs. 

The Antiquity of London— Babies and Ladies — The Marquis of 
Lansdowne — ^Portrait of Sterne — Pork and Cheese — The Old 
Lady of Threadneedle street — A Valuable Bit of Paper — Cords 
of Bullion — Mint Drops — A good Word for American Credit — 
The Keform Club — Au revoir. 

March — , 1859. 

London is like the whirlpool below J^iagara — once 
in, it is hard to get out of it. Intending to stop but 
two weeks in the city, I see by the almanac that 
^ye have whirled round ; and I can only now get 
away by consoling myself with the promise of 
returning later in the season, when I hope to turn 
over a few more leaves in this wonderful volume of 
social life and human history. The more one 
explores London the greater and grander it seems. 
It is five times as large as "New York in point of 
population ; while its magnificent Parks and spa- 
cious palaces extend the area of the town over 
about ten times the surface occupied by our own 
" great Metropolis." And then its history, running 
back beyond the authentic chronicles of the anti- 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN" EUROPE. 193 

quary; beyond the day when Tacitus wrote of 
Londiniura, nntil the very foundation of the city is 
lost in the mist of mythology ; while the origin of 
its name is still a mattbr of dispute among the 
learned philologists of the Historical Societies. 
They have discovered over twenty different varia- 
tions of the name of London ; but the derivation 
still remains an undecided question. 

The parks are the crowning glory of London. 
Beautiful as green grass, noble trees, lovely lakes, 
and smoothly rolled walks and drives can make 
them, they afford a margin and a breathing place 
for the overflowing populace, and a luxurious airing 
for the poor who promenade, and for the rich who 
ride through their elegant avenues. In the middle 
of a fine day, Hyde Park, Regent's Park and St. 
James's are thronged, not only with sumptuous 
equipages, with ladies and gentlemen on horseback, 
but with imiumerable nurses and children. Eng- 
lish babies live out of doors — 'hence their ruddy 
cheeks and robust frames. And English ladies live 
on horseback — hence more physical benefits than I 
can stop to enumerate. They usually ride in the 
morning, followed by a groom ; but there are hun- 
dreds of beautiful equestriennes^ superbly mounted, 
who ride alone — an indication that they would not 
object to being joined by an agreeable gentleman. 

9 



194 SPAEKS FKOM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OK, 

Another pleasant peculiarity of London is the sud- 
denness with which one can leave the city and find 
himself in a fine old palatial mansion surrounded 
bj trees, and apparently completely isolated from 
metropolitan life. In yisiting Lord Lansdowne, for 
instance, we drive through a gateway in the very 
heart of the town, and instantly every sight, and 
almost every sound of the great city is lost. The 
seclusion is quite magical. And then we are doubly 
lost, and doubly delighted in the splendid library 
and beautiful picture gallery of the venerable mar- 
quis. It is one of the choicest collections in Eng- 
land. Lord Lansdowne, who is now eighty years 
of age, retains all his youthful enthusiasm for lite- 
rature and art ; and there is scarcely an author or 
artist of merit living, who has not been aided and 
encouraged by his lordship's munificent patronage. 
Among his paintings. Sir Joshua Eeynolds' por- 
trait of Sterne is a work of extraordinary power. I 
could not refrain from expressing the most enthu- , 
thiastic admiration of the life-likeness of the pic- 
ture ; at which the marquis remarked, that Sidney 
Smith used to turn from all the rest and gaze most 
intently upon this. There are many other gems 
which I have not time to describe or mention even ; 
but there is nothing in all this rich and rare collec- 
tion half as interesting as the noble proprietor him- 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUKOPE. 195 

self, whose earnest conversation is like a living 
stream of history. 

Perhaps there can hardly be a more decided con- 
trast whereby to jolt the reader's sensibilities than a 
plunge from the splendid palace of the Maecenas of 
the nobility into the mammoth pork and cheese 
establishment of Messrs. Lnnham & Co. But, in 
the expressive and philosophical language of the 
lively and loquacious Walter, "Sich is life!" 
Mr. James McHenry, of Liverpool, one of the Uvest 
merchants and bankers in Europe, has just closed a 
contract with the French government for sup- 
plying the ISTavy with provisions ; and so he calls 
to take me to see the first lot packed off from the 
immense establishment of Messrs. James Lunham & 
Co., who handle five millions worth of pork and 
cheese per annum, and whose name is well known 
to the Hubbards and Yan Brunts of JSTew York. 
Such a wilderness of hams; such mountains of 
cheese ; such piles of pork, in all shapes, and for all 
markets ! 

"'Tis grease, but living grease no more." 

The proprietors of this great pork shop have just 
sent a "flitch of bacon" to the princess royal, pre- 
suming, on the birth of her baby, that the happy 
wife and mother is entitled to such a present in 



196. SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OR, 

accordance with the good old English maxim, viz. : 
" That if a married couple live together for the first 
twelve months without quarrelling, they are worthy 
to be presented with a fiitch of bacon." 

'Next I am introduced to " the old lady of Thread- 
needle street ;" and thanks to the kindness of the 
managing governor, Mr. Elsey, and to Mr. Marshall, 
who has been the cashier for over fifty years, I have 
been permitted to visit every part of the Bank of 
England, from vault to attic, a privilege seldom 
granted to an outsider. Of course, everybody 
know^s that this is the greatest banking institution 
in the w^orld ; but, comparatively, few persons can 
have an adequate conception of the vastness of the 
establishment, or the extent of its operations. I 
shall not undertake to describe it, externally or in- 
ternally ; a few facts only, may give the reader a 
little "food for the imagination." The building 
covers about three acres of ground. Many of its 
rooms are copied from the classic models of Greece 
and Rome. The employees number about one 
thousand. Several of the ofiicers reside in the 
Bank. No note is ever issued the second time. 
The notes redeemed each day, are checked, can- 
celled, and put away in boxes. After keeping 
them ten years, they are burned. The accumula- 
tion of the last ten years, now in the vaults of the 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 197 

bank, amounts to three thousand million of pounds ! 
And yet any one of these notes can be referred to 
in- a minute, and the history of its issue and its 
return given. The bank does all its own printing, 
and several presses are kept busy. Everything is 
done by machinery — the note is not touched by the 
pen before it goes out. I held in my hand yes- 
terday, one note for one million of pounds, and two 
little side-pocket packages of notes amounting to 
two million of pounds. In the bullion-room, ingots 
of gold were piled up like cords of wood, and 
silver bars in vast heaps. The machines for detect- 
ing light coin, and for cutting them, are exceed- 
ingly curious and yet simple. Every banker's 
deposit is weighed; and all the light pieces cut 
nearly in two and returned to him next day. The 
system of the bank is as perfect and as exact as 
clock-work. And yet in spite of all precaution, 
gome small forgery is almost daily detected. But 
since the great forgery committed by Asttell for 
£320,000, and by Fauntleroy for £360,000, the 
bank has not lost any very heavy sums ; although, 
in 1822, capital punishment for the crime was 
abolished, when the old fogies predicted that every- 
body hard up would turn forger. 

In the specie department of the bank there were 
bags and boxes of sovereigns and half-sovereigns 



198 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OK, 

enough to make a miser m.ad. Moimtains of ^'mint 
drops," for which millions are sighing, and dying, 
and perpetrating all conceivable crimes ! I was 
asked to lift a big bag of sovereigns, and for once, I 
mnst confess, I felt a sovereign disgust for money. 
With half a dozen pieces of these little " conve- 
niences " in m J pocket, I retired from the bank, 
feeling a thousand times more comfortable than 
some of the millionaires who had been shaking in 
their boots, in the applicants' "Sweating Room," 
while the official dispenser of the golden blessings 
had been so generously initiating me into the sub- 
lime mysteries of the "art of money making!" 
After leaving the cashier's office, an official was 
sent to me to inquire " which of the "New York city 
banks was considered soundest." I took great 
pleasure in giving the names of several, with the 
confident assurance that they were " as safe as the 
Bank of England." There was one item which I 
learned from the bank, decidedly gratifying to our 
national pride. It was this : JVot a single piece of 
American paper which laid over during the late 
panic now remains impaid. This, said Mr. Elsey, 
the Governor, cannot be said of any other nation 
on the earth! Let the "bears" on American 
securities put this in their pipe and smoke it. Li 
connection with this cheering and honorable fact, I 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 199 

may add, that the bonds of the "Atlantic and 
Great Western Railroad" have just been put upon 
the market, and are in good demand. I have just 
been shown a dispatch from Salamanca, the great 
Madrid banker, asking if he could have the whole 
of them. The holders of " Erie," and " Ohio and 
Mississippi," regard this new road as the salvation 
of their stock : I merely mention these facts as 1 
have gathered them to-daj from some of the lead- 
ing operators of Lombard street. 

I am writing from the luxurious rooms of the 
" Eeform Club," and ought to say a word in regard 
to this admirable institution, where I have met and 
made so many excellent acquaintances, and where 
I have been made " quite at home," by being made 
an " honorary member." It is the head-quarters of 
the leading Liberals of the day — a powerful body 
of men, numbering some fourteen hundred, and 
among them many of the foremost members of Par- 
liament. Thackeray, Mackay, Ingram, Wyld, 
Campbell, Jackson, James, Behan, Frazer, Parkes, 
and a host of names that are " hosts in themselves," 
here daily meet to discuss the affairs of the world 
in general, of reform in particular ; and above all, 
Francatelli's good dinners. Signor Francatelli (I 
believe he is a brother of the Count Francatelli of 
IN'ew York) is the successor of the great Soyer, and. 



200 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OR, 

as all admit, a much greater artist than his illustri- 
ous predecessor. His herb soup is superb ! The 
wines and the " wittles" are the best that London 
can produce (including ''sparkling Catawba"), and 
furnished at about half the hotel charges. The 
Club House (one of the seven similar institutions 
in Pall Mall) is a magnificent building, furnished 
with every possible luxury, except beds. Tliere 
are bathing rooms, reading rooms, writing-rooms, 
smoking-rooms, library, etc., etc. ; and during the 
sessions of Parliament, a telegraph bulletin contin- 
ually announces the progress of the debates. But 
I must not longer linger, even among the intellect- 
ual, social and gastronomic luxuries of the " Ee- 
form Club." Time flies, and railways won't wait. 
I leave London with more regret than I deemed it 
possible to feel, when entering its unknown wilder- 
ness but a few weeks since ; albeit for " fresh fields 
and -pastures new." The hospitality of the people 
here is inexhaustible ; and I jpart from many friends 
with feelings of gratitude that I will not attempt 
to coin into words. " Come again," is the cordial 
good-bye of every one ; and '' cut and come again," 
{Deo volente) most assuredly I will. 



LIFE AND LIBEETY IN EUKOPE. 201 



First Impressions of Paris. 

The Channel — Sea-sickness — An Orange Blossom Party— Cuddling 
before Folks — Calais to Paris — Grand Hotel du Louvre — Mardi 
Gras — Bal Masque — Bois du Boulogne — Such is Life. 

Hotel du Louvkb, P^ris, 

March 9, 1859. 

To jump from London into Paris, is a transition not 
unlikely to prodnce a sort of mental paralysis, from 
the effect of wliicli it takes a little time to recover 
one's equilibrium! From the low-voiced, gentle- 
mannered tone of thorough-bred Englishmen, to 
these garrulous, grotesque, grimacious Frenchmen ! 
A little strip of water, only twenty-four miles wide, 
across which, on a clear day, from the shore of " the 
tight little Island," we can see windmills playing 
in France, and even the farmers in their fields — 
and the nationalities of the two peoples are so 
marked with peculiarities, as to convince the most, 
bigoted Adamite, that the human race has more 
than one origin, if not more than one destiny. The 
very earth wears a different aspect; and nothing 
seemed familiar, and English^ but the eternal stars 



202 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OR, 

tliat twinkled a pleasant companionship on my way 
from Calais to Paris. The dear old " Dipper," and 
that darling little cluster of jewels, the ''seven 
stars," seemed to look lovingly down; and their 
unchanging light was like the eyes of an old friend 
in a strange land. Beautiful types of the universal- 
ity of God ; blessed tokens of an omnipresent and 
ever watchful Love ; how dark and dreary the poor 
wanderer's path would be, on sea or land, but for 
the gracious guidance and the sweet assurance of 
those celestial, steadfast beams ! 

We left the London Station at half-past eight on 
Monday morning, and arrived at the Hotel du 
Louvre in Paris a little before twelve at night — the 
distance being about three hundred and twenty 
miles, the fare something less than sixteen dollars, 
first class. To Dover, eighty miles, in two hours : 
across the Channel, twenty-four miles, in a little 
less than two hours (a favorable passage), and from 
Calais through Lille, Amiens, and many places of 
lesser note, the train, running punctually up to 
time, reached Paris a little before eleven. 

The Channel is the great bug-bear of Continental 
travellers ; and, for churning up of that most dis- 
tressing, disgusting and nnpardonable of maladies, 
sea-sickness, I suppose the waters of the English 
Channel are the most " effective " of any in the 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EDROPE. 203 

world. The moment the boat leaves the pier she 
begins to pitch and toss, like a horse that starts on 
a canter from the score, and the tonghest stomachs 
of the very saltest of the passengers are qnite often 
turned inside out before the boat has been five 
minutes from the dock. There is a " short, uneasy 
motion" of the vessel, which upsets even the 
veterans of the sea, who for fifty years have found 
in the rolls and swells of the Atlantic their naost 
delightful sensations. Perhaps I shall be charged 
with a sort of ventral pride, as well as egotism, 
when I add that I passed the ordeal without the 
first disagreeable emotion. But then, as I have 
said, we were highly favored. Only a few days 
before, a IsTew York party were eleven hours in 
crossing ; and, on the very next trip, the same boat 
was wrecked against her own pier at Boulogne, and 
three lives lost. The boats are very small, and, as 
the tide rises and falls some twenty-four feet, the 
entrance to the harbors on both sides of the Chan- 
nel is often diflS.cult. From Folkestone to Boulogne 
the departure of the boats is governed by the tides ; 
and the railway trains connecting with them, on 
both sides, are tidal also in their time-tables. The 
Boulogne route is half an hour longer in the boat ; 
and about an hour less in the train, but, as the lat- 
ter waits for the Calais line, nothing is gained by 



204 8PAKKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OR, 

the former route, except a chance for a little more 
protracted and thorough lit of sea-sickness. I 
should, therefore, recommend the Dover and Calais 
trip, simply because it gives seven miles less of 
ventral agitation ; and, as there are fine hotels on 
either side, the weak and the timid, who are not in 
a hiirrj, had better wait for a fair wind and a 
smooth sea. 

It is a little remarkable that no stewardess is 
employed on board of these boats, where sea-sick- 
ness is the specialty of female passengers. The 
offices which the chamber men have to perform for 
crowds of poor, prostrate women, retching with 
sickness and trembling with fear, are of the most 
unromantic, not to say indecent, sort. Why it is that 
London brides run such terrible risks of disenchant- 
ing their husbands of an hour by a Channel trip to 
Paris, is a fact that I have not the philosophy to 
explain. "We had one of these orange blossom 
parties for our fellow-passengers. The moment I 
saw them promenading and foolishly fondling on 
the platform of the London station, I saw through 
the " illusion " of the bridal veil ; and felt more 
pity than envy for the groom, in the revelations 
that were to come with the " breakers ahead." 
The happy couple were utterly upset ; the bride lost 
her breakfast and her bloom, while the bridegroom's 

0* 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 205 

Bhirt-bosom lost its purity, and his face no longer 
wore that life assurance look of happiness which 
shone so radiantly but an hour before. The party 
did not fully recover their health and tenderness 
before reaching Paris ; although in the omnibus, on 
our way to the hotel, they had sufficiently revived 
to renew the billing and cooing so very common on 
the day, and sometimes, on the day after marriage. 
Cuddling in public is a pretty sure evidence of love 
that never lasts. It is one of those " flowers of the 
affections" (mushrooms rather) that spring from 
the passions and wilt early. Women who think by 
" dearing " and kissing their husbands " before 
folks " to excite envy in men who are forced to look 
on, are greatly mistaken in the effect of these fond 
demonstrations. The feeling is simply a mingled 
emotion of pity and disgust. One never sees such 
maudlin dalliance before the curtain, without a 
holy horror of the " Caudle " behind it. 

From Calais to Paris the road runs through a 
country almost as level as a prairie — a sort of low 
first step to the Continent of Europe. One striking 
feature of the landscape is the willows, long rows 
of which are running in all directions, as far as the 
eye can see. These trees are usually amputated 
every year or two, at about six feet from the 
ground, when the shoots, looking like bushy wigs 



206 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OR, 

on short bodies, lean their heads lovingly together 
across the narrow ditches and streamlets which 
drain the fields. Of these willow twigs an immense 
quantity of baskets are made, and exported all over 
the world. The windmills next arrest the eye. I 
did not count them ; but I believe we passed thou- 
sands ; and in the vicinity of Lille (a city of Y0,000 
inhabitants and famous for its thread), there are, at 
the least calculation, five hundred of these awk- 
ward, four-spoked wheels vexing the eye, and dis- 
turbing the horizon. I felt a sort of Quixotic 
disposition to attack them, especially on the score 
of economy, as one good steam engine might do the 
work of all. But old customs are hard to get rid 
of. France has adopted the Railway, and the 
Telegraph ; but still persists in grinding with the 
old mill. But worse than the monotonous wind- 
mill, whose arms never tire, is it to see the women at 
work on the farms, ploughing, planting, hoeing and 
harrowing. I saw two women dragging a harrow, 
and have not had my feelings so " harrowed up " 
for many a day. And then to see a pair of femi- 
nine legs, for which I have always cultivated the 
most delicate and respectful reverence, desecrated 
with mud and manure ! O France, is this your 
boasted gallantry! To make field-hands of your 
women, strapping them to harrows and working 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUEOPE. 207 

them like oxen ! ^o wonder the crude fruit they 
bear sits ill upon the national stomach, causing fits 
of periodical nausea and revolution. 

But I have been a day and a night in Paris, and 
must hasten to mention the experiences thereof. 
The magnificence of the " Grand Hotel du Louvre," 
quite eclipses everything in the hotel way I have 
ever seen, even in America. I shall not yet attempt 
to describe it. The word gorgeous is applicable 
everywhere. The hotel is located in the Kue de 
Hivoli, directly opposite the Louvre, and but a short 
distance from the Palace of the Tuileries. It was 
finished four years ago, at a cost of seventeen 
millions of francs, and is Owned by the " Credit 
Mobilier." It combines the American and 
European system — the table Whote and restaurant. 
The dining hall is copied from the Palace of Yer- 
sailles, and far surpasses the crystal and gilded 
splendors of the celebrated " Crockford's " in Lon- 
don. The rooms are richly and elegantly furnished, 
and the beds the best I ever slept on. 

On going into the street yesterday morning, I 
found ihe Eue de Eivoli, the Place Yendome, and 
the Place de la Concorde, thronged with a most 
motley and merry crowd. It was the festival of the 
Mardi Gras, and all Paris was out for a holiday. Sol- 
diers, in red pants, red epaulets, and brass helmets, 



208 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OR, 

were everywhere, ou horseback and on foot, under 
arms, and with women hangiug on their arms. 
Masks and music mingled in the throng; and, as if, 
" for one day only," the sexes seemed to have ex- 
changed costume. It was noisy, gay, and good- 
natured, and thoroughly Parisian in the heartiness 
and abandon which the people give to any sort of 
show, if only a fatted ox, mounted on a car and 
decked with tri-colored ribbons. The comic proces- 
sion passed through the Garden of the Tuileries, to 
show themselves to the Emperor ; and subsequently 
dissolved and scattered all over the city. In the 
evening there was a Bal Masque at the Grand Opera 
House — which I entered at 12 and left at 4 — and 
where I saw " things not lawful for man to utter." 
'Eo one has ever ventured to fully describe a Mask 
Ball in Paris. It cannot be done. I shrink from 
the attempt. The agony is too great ; so let me imi- 
tate the example of the despairing artist — and throw 
over the picture the veil of — silence and charity. 
The orchestra of two hundred and fifty performers, 
under the baton of the famous Strauss, was enough 
to take a sober man off his feet. No wonder that 
it drove the dancers mad ; for surely " madness 
ruled the house." At four o'clock this morning the 
ball had not begun to break, while the fun was 
growing "fast and furious." Respectable ladies 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 209 

(several Americans among them) sat masked in tlie 
boxes, enjoying tlie exhibitions, and most provok- 
inglj nodding and shaking their fans to some of ns 
modest fellows, of whom they evidently " had the 
advantage." 

The Bois dn Boulogne being one of the " Bois" to 
know, I improved yesterday afternoon's sunshine 
by driving through its beautiful groves. It is per- 
fectly lovely — to quote what every one exclaims a 
thousand times, more or less, at every visit to this 
wild, yet cultivated ; sequestered, yet most public, 
enchanting forest of pleasure. The walks ; the car- 
riage roads ; the promenade " pour les Cavaliers ;" 
the lovely lakes ; the miniature Niagaras ; and the 
thousands of people one meets, riding, driving, 
walking — all combine to make the Bois du Bou- 
logne one of the most attractive places in the 
world ; and to Louis Napoleon belongs the glory of 
making it a very paradise for the Parisians. It is 
not strange that the people shout '' Yive I'Empe- 
reur" with a very hearty emphasis, when one con- 
siders how much he has done to embellish Paris, 
and to add to the health, comfort, and pleasure of 
its citizens. Whatever history may say of the 
Third Napoleon, as a man of unscrupulous ambi- 
tion, there can be no doubt that his will and his 
acts toward France are benevolent and patriotic. 



210 SPAEKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OR, 

Bj appealing to the reminiscences of glory and the 
Empire, he keeps alive tlie enthusiasm that keeps 
him on the throne ; and, by constant material im- 
provements in and aronnd the capital of the nation, 
he appeals to the very senses of the masses in vin- 
dication of his philanthropy as a man, and his 
wisdom as a ruler. It will be written upon the 
tomb of Louis l^apoleon, that he recreated Paris 
and made the Bois du Boulogne — glory enough to 
keep his memory green in the grateful hearts of 
coming generations, long after the ITapoleon dy- 
nasty shall have passed away. 

jSTo ISTew Yorker can ever witness the beauties 
and the blessings of the Bois du Boulogne without 
feeling in a hurry to go home and do what he can 
to push the " Central P^rk" on to completion. It is 
one of those investments for which a draft on pos- 
terity will be most duly and most cheerfully hon- 
ored. To see these Parisians flocking to the " Bois " 
for pleasure and for health ; for the dissipation of 
of cares and of headaches ; for the show off of fine 
equipages and elegant toilettes, affords, in itself, a 
perpetual amusement, one of the many attractions 
which render Paris the favorite resort of the plea- 
sure-seekers of the world. The line of carriages 
yesterday reached from the Louvre to the lake, a 
distance of nearly -^ve miles. Some were filled 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 211 

with nurses and children; others with ladies or 
gentlemen exclusively ; and others with a pleasant 
proportion of both. And the variety of faces and 
expressions one meets in this long procession affords 
a curious comment on human nature and everyday 
life. There comes a lady weeping behind a black 
veil ; the next is kissing behind a white one ; while 
the occupants of the third, perhaps, may be ab- 
sorbed in their devotions, all the curtains being 
closely drawn. Such is life ! But, for the morn- 
ing after ^' such a night," I have rattled off quite 
enough ; in the meantime, the " Louvre," Yer- 
sailles, St. Cloud, Pere la Chaise, and several other 
places and things, are waiting to be visited. 



212 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OR, 



Napoleonism. 

The Tomb of the Emperor — The Religion of France — The Empress 
Eugenie — The Prince Imperial — Louis Napoleon on Horse-back 
— ^The Napoleon Circus — The Fashions — The Caf(§s — Priests — 
American Spendthrifts in Paris. 

Grand Hotel du Louvre, Paris, . 

3farch — , 1869. 

lis the ashes of the Great ITapoleon still live the 
fires that feed the flame of patriotism in the heart 
of France. The " Hotel des Invalides^'^ which con- 
tains the dust of the mighty dead, is the very 
"Holy of Holies" to a people whose prayer is 
ambition, and whose religion is glory. In a small 
circular chapel the imperial remains are still wait- 
ing to be deposited in their final resting-place be- 
neath the lofty and gorgeous dome which seems to 
swell proudly and triumphantly in the air, as if 
conscious of the sacred treasure beneath. The 
colossal sarcophagus which is to receive the coffin, 
cut from a solid block of porphyry, is now ready; 
and the final funeral ceremony will soon take place 
with solemn pomp and stately splendor. Over the 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 213 

bronze door to the crypt, on a black marble slab, 
are engraved the emperor's last words, which have 
been most literally and devoutly fulfilled ; " I desire 
that my ashes should repose on the banks of the 
Seine, in the midst of the people of France whom I 
have loved so well." Two of the columns of the 
crypt are dedicated to IN'apoleon's friends in 
adversity — ^Marshals Durve and Bertrand, and the 
pavement is decorated with a crown of laurels in 
mosaic. The gallery in which the body now lies 
contains the sword worn at Austerlitz ; the colors 
taken in different battles; the insignia worn on 
State occasions ; and the Crown of Gold voted to 
the emperor by the town of Cherbourg. 

Obedient to my own impulse, as well as to the 
genius of France, the Tomb of !N'apoleon received 
my first homage as a pilgrim to the " sacred places " 
of Paris. The morning was mild and cloudless. 
The placid Seine looked all unconscious of the 
wretched suicides who nightly plunge into its 
bosom : 

" Mad from life's history, 
Glad to death's mysterj'. 
Swift to be hurled — 
Anywhere, anywhere 
Out of the world." 

The Carnival had just closed, and six damp 



214 SPAKKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OR, 

corpses were lying in the Morgue^^ waiting to be 
recognized. The number of dead bodies daily 
raised from the river always doubles during the 
fete days. In the mad carousal some lose their 
money, some their virtue, some their wits ; and so, 
to make a shocking pun, on a shocking subject, 
they rush m.'S6ine. But this is a digression. We 
cross the river (scarcely worthy of the name to an 
American eye), which divides the city into the 
" Right " and " Left ;" pass through the Faubourg 
St. Germain; and join the miscellaneous crowds, 
who, with heads bare and voices hushed to silence, 
are pressing in to look at the tomb. I have seldom, 
perhaps never, seen so much reverence expressed in 
the living human face as here, while the devout 
procession intently gazes and slowly retires. The 
sailor and the soldier ; the gamin and the grisette ; 
the fine lady and the flaunting lorette, the high and 
the low ; the rich and the poor ; the old and the 
young; the citizen and the stranger — all pause 
reverently, almost breathlessly, in the presence of 
these cold and silent cinders, whose living spark is 
still "the star of Empire and of destiny" to a w^hole 
hemisphere of humanity. The souvenirs of JJTapo- 
leon are the perpetual inspiration of France ; and 
his name is the harbinger and the synonym of glory. 
No other name among men awakens such fiery re- 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 215 

collections; and none can so arouse a nation to 
" lofty deeds and daring high." Let them who will 
cast stones on the Tomb of the Hero ; it is snrely 
more humane, and more Christian, to add a votive 
flower of honest admiration, or even of regret, to 
the unfading wreath of immortelles with which the 
living love to crown the dead, who have stamped 
their own individuality upon long ages of national 
history and of human destiny. In Paris, the genius 
of i^apoleon is omnipresent ; in the monuments ; in 
the arts; in the magnificent public works; and, 
above all, in the grateful memory of the people. 
It is difficult to associate such a mighty influence, 
such a living jprinci^le with the idea of death. 
But there is J^Tapoleon's tomb; there his coffin; 
there his sword ; there the last habiliments that he 
wore. And here, in a bed of adamantine porphyry, 
lined with thick sheets of granite — 

" He sleeps his last sleep, he has fought his last battle, 
No sound can awake him to glory again." 

Eeturning from the Tomb, and passing the Tuil- 
eries, I noticed an indiscriminate crowd gathering 
upon the sidewalks, and gazing very earnestly at 
the gateway of the Palace. Presently, drums were 
beaten within the court; the guard, who were 
" standing at ease " outside, rushed in and formed a 



216 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OE, 

line ; then a couple of outriders in gold laced coats 
sliot out, followed by a magnificent open coach and 
four, in which the Empress was seated, with a 
Maid of Honor at her side. Eugenie is elegant, 
rather than beautiful ; and her graceful manner of 
bowing to the populace, is not only conciliating 
but winning. She is exceedingly popular with all 
classes of the Parisians ; and her tasteful toilette 
regulates the feminine fashions of the world. She 
is very fond of driving, and usually goes out in the 
state I have described. 

Driving yesterday in the Eois du Boulogne, where 
the equipages might have been counted by thous- 
ands, the approach of postillions and a cavalcade of 
cuirassiers, led me to look for the passing of the 
Emperor ; when lo, the superb barouche rolled by, 
with only the imperial baby and his noble nurse ! 
A great deal more show than substance. But that 
" blessed baby," the Prince Imperial, is a fine little 
three year old, who looks as if he were made of 
good milk and blood, with a large, wondering sort 
of an eye, that seems already to have a dreamy 
vision of the "All hail hereafter !" The little fellow's 
cradle is well watched, and his carriage closely 
guarded. In about half an hour after his little 
highness had disappeared, the Emperor himself 
came trotting by on a very fine horse, accompanied 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 217 

by a couple of grooms, and some half dozen gentle- 
men-^quite an nndistinguislied party in appear- 
ance, except for tlie golden garniture of the grooms. 
On arriving near the Triumphal Arch, the Emperor 
dismounted, jumped into his 'New York wagon, 
with a couj)le of footmen behind, took the ribbons 
in his own hands, and let out his American trotters 
at about a four minute pace, across the Champs 
Elysees, and down the Eue de Eivoli, in a half 
business-like, half sportsmanlike manner. Louis 
l^apoleon is an expert horseman, and a decided 
horse fancier. His liberal patronage of blood and 
speed has raised the price of horse flesh the world 
over. As I have the most respectful admiration 
for a beautiful horse (next to a beautiful woman 
the finest creature alive), I am counting on a great 
treat in a promised visit to the " Emperor's stables." 
The stables of the ^'E'apoleon Circus," which I have 
already seen, contain about sixty horses, and 
among them some remarkably fine animals. These 
stables are lighted with gas, and are entirely 
inodorous. But I must hold up on horses, only 
adding that the carriage horses here are splendid 
animals, large and showy ; and I am glad to notice 
that there is not a ''hoh tail nag " in Paris. Such 
barbarous curtailment is only tolerated by " outside 
barbarians." I^osa Bonheur^s horses — round, sleek, 
10 



218 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OR, 

dappled greys, with twisted tails are seen every- 
where. The Parisian ladies do not seem to be as 
fond of riding as the English ; and they do not ride 
as well. A thorough-bred English woman, mounted 
on a thorongh-bred horse, is one of the finest sights 
in the world. 

Perhaps the ladies would like a word or two 
touching the fashions. Let me then assure them 
that crinoline is subsiding. I do not believe that 
the haut ton of Paris have ever worn hoops of such 
vast rotundity as we have seen in ISTew York ; and, 
without being too curious on the subject, I have 
come to the conclusion that the Parisian skirt, as 
now worn, is made of some more flexible material 
than steel. At all events, it yields more easily and 
gracefully in a crowd. 

Bonnets are gradually coming over the face, par- 
ticularly over the middle of the forehead. The 
grisettes are the only hare headed women one sees 
in the streets, and they all wear caps ! - Trailing 
dresses are never worn, except in carriages and 
drawing-rooms ; and street dresses are more subdued 
in cut and color than we are accustomed to meet in 
Broadway. Fondness of show is a middle-class 
American weakness ; the moment a lady gets a 
dashing new dress, she must out with it for exhibi- 
tion on the side walk. The Parisian ladies keep 



LIFE AlJD LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 219 

their more stunning " habits " within doors. The 
whole city of Paris seems to be one vast bazaar of 
millinery, jewelry, and jimcrackery, and all the 
goods are exposed in the windows. The Cafes, of 
which there are no less than five hundred in the 
space of a mile and a half on the Boulevards, seem 
to do all the business. Tliey are thronged at all 
hours, by women as well as men ; while hundreds, 
day and night, are sitting on the sidewalk, sijDping 
their coifee and cogniac. France drinks about four 
times as much coifee as tea ; while England drinks 
about four times as much tea as coifee. There is 
some significance in this, " if philosophy could find 
it out." 

As the Irishman in Cincinnati said, '* every other 
man he met was a pig," so here in Paris, every 
other man is a soldier or a priest. I don't know 
why it is, but, as Topsey says, " I s'pose it's cause 
Ise so wicked," but I never can meet one of these 
black spiders in long robes without a feeling of 
peculiar protestant irritation in the toes. They may 
be a necessary part of the social machinery ; but 

well, I won't discuss the subject while on my 

way to Pome, lest the Jesuits should mistake me 
for Lola Montez in disguise. One can tolerate the 
soldier, notwithstanding he is a tax upon the body 
politic, for there is something downright and hearty 



220 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OR, 

in. his business. At all events, there is nothing 
hypocritical or sneaking in it. But as for the sleek 
and sanctimonious priest, who " shows me the steep 
and thorny way to heaven, while himself the prim- 
rose path of dalliance treads " — ^but this will never 
do ! There is coming an insurrection in Italy; and 
an effort to strip the papal Papa of temporal power ; 
and I don't intend to be mixed up in the muss. 
The best informed men here think '' the Empire," 
just now, means " War ;" and, from all I can learn, 
the masses are rather in favor of the game. The 
army evidently wants it. 

The Americans in Paris are not quite so plentiful 
as usual, the tide having set southward during the 
Carnival. And yet one meets them everywhere ; 
and among other, not particularly creditable speci- 
mens, are the boys " in their teens," whose foolish 
"governors" allow them to throw away money 
here at the rate of a hundred dollars a day. As 
" extravagant as an American " has become a pro- 
verb in Paris ; and none of our national follies is 
more laughed at than this. Every vulgar specu- 
lator who has blundered into a fortune, brings or 
sends his uncouth cubs here to be "polished;" and, 
starting upon the fallacy that " money makes the 
gentleman," they play the farce of the monkey 
shinning up a pole, to the great delectation of the 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EtJitOPE. 221 

Parisians, and to the equal disgust of their country- 
men. To call the excesses which they commit 
beastly, would be a gross injustice to the brute 
creation. If, sometimes, we are harshly judged by 
men of high intelligence and refinement abroad, let 
us remember the " hard specimens " we send them, 
and be charitable. 



222 SPAEKS FKOM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OE, 



Life in Paris. 

The Carnival — Lorettes and Pirouettes — Sunday Amusements — ■■ 
Butterfly Philosophy — Parisian Women — The Benign Reign of 
Napoleon — The Opera — A Grand Concert — The Emperor at the 
Theatre — Grisi, Mario, and Alboni. 

Hotel du Louvre, Paris. 

March IT, 1859. 

The river of life in the city of Paris reminds one of 
the rapids on the brink of I^iagara; a merry, 
sparkling, dancing rush, utterly careless, or bliss- 
fully unconscious of the inevitable abyss which suc- 
ceeds and swallows all. I arrived here on the last 
day of the Carnival, when the revelry was at its 
height, culminating and concluding in a grand hal 
masque at the theatre of the Grand Opera. The 
crowd was crushing ; and the feat of the evening 
was rather shocking to one unaccustomed to the 
saucy audacity of the Parisian lorette. The women 
were required to appear in masks ; but the prettiest 
of them showed their faces as well as their " paces " 
before they had been long on the floor. 

The "feat" above alluded to consisted in the 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 223 

daring attempt on the part of the dancing damsel, 
ill her startling jpirouettes^ to take off her partner's 
hat by the tip of her toe ! And this was continually 
done, no matter how tall the gentleman thus 
honored. It seemed as if every woman on the floor 
was a professional dancer, and as supple, if not as 
graceful, as an Elssler, or a Taglioni. The ball 
opened at midnight, and closed about seven in the 
morning. Everybody seemed exhilarated, but no- 
body was intoxicated, except by the music, which 
consisted of a band of two hundred and fifty per- 
formers, led by Strauss. Thus ended the Carnival 
in Paris, and the next day, until evening, the city 
was comparatively quiet; but on the following 
Sunday everybody was out for a holiday. All the 
fancy shops and fancy saloons were open ; the Bois 
du Boulogne was thronged with carriages, the 
Champs Elysdes filled with pedestrians, the Gar- 
dens of the Tuileries covered with white-capped 
honnes as thick as daisies, each " minding a baby," 
while the Boulevards looked like a Fourth of July 
without the flags and fire-crackers. 

On retiring from the sanctuary, the Parisian 
devotee is ready for any sort of amusement that 
can be had " for love or money." In the evening 
(Sunday) the theatres are thronged, and the cafes 
and casinos crowded. The latter are public ball- 
rooms, where gentlemen pay three francs for admis- 



224 8PAKK8 FKOM A LOCOMOTIVE; OE, 

sion, and the ladies, or lorettes, are admitted free. 
In the "Latin Quarter," at a place called the 
"Prado," the students and the grisettes flock to- 
gether, and make a night of night, dancing in hats, 
overcoats, shawls, etc. The saloons are brilliantly 
lighted, and the mnsic is of the very best quality. 
And thus passes Sunday, even during Lent, in this 
city of Paris. It is one continued whirl of giddy 
excitement, in which men and women, old and 
young, seem to have no otlier thought than how to 
extract the most exciting pleasure from the passing 
hour. " Do you never thinlc f said a pensively- 
philosophical gentleman to a gay and laughing 
lorette who was showing him through the picture 
palace of Yersailles. " E'ever beyond the night," 
was her naive reply. " But," added he, " do you 
never reflect opon what must be the end of this life 
of pleasure you are leading ?" " Oh, no," was the 
light and lively answer ; " I may die ; I may marry ; 
I may throw myself into the Seine ; nHmporte .-'" 
And this is the philosophy of Paris. Suffering and 
sorrow there may be, must be, even here, but one 
never sees a sad face in the street, while in all the 
saloons and cafes of the city there is a fullness of 
life, an exuberance of joyousness, which almost 
makes one forget that a human heartache can 6xist 
in the world. 

As a general rule, the women of Paris are not 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 225 

handsome — but there is something indescribably 
neat, and trim, and fascinating, about them, which 
more than compensates for any lack of what is 
usually regarded as purely personal beauty. They 
are full of vivacity, of esprit ; and there is 2ije-ne- 
•sais-quoi-sitj about them, in their manner, thorgl? "^Y 
feeling and philosophy, that can only be .described 
as Parisian. They take much more pains to please 
in little things than either the American or English 
women ; and, after all, it is these affectionate trifles ' 
that fascinate and fix us. A Parisian woman seems 
to study every whim of the man she loves. She 
will bring his slippers, light the alumette for his 
cigar, pour out his wine, sing to him, play to him, 
dance for him — anything and everything to delight 
him ; and all with such a pleasant grace, and pretty 
prattle, as to make the charm and the chain of love 
complete. And then they always have a flower on 
their tables, in their windows, in their hair, and in 
their bosoms, which gives them a sort of rose-geran- 
ium look and odor, that is particularly agreeable. 
Instead of finesseing in the cheating game of matri-^ 
mony, they are only anxious to flnd, and to retain^ 
a lover. Sufficient for the day are the j^leasures. 
thereof, is the very religion of Paris. No wonder 
that disciples to such a creed flock here, to indulge 
in such an Epicurean worship, from all parts of the 

10* 



226 SPAEKS FKOM A LOCOMOTIVE; OE, 

world. And Louis IlTapoleon is certainly contribut- 
ing to the attraction, by making the entire city one 
vast Palace of Pleasure. Every nuisance is being 
abated ; every unsightly object removed, under 
the imperial magic of " the one man power." 
• 'Tb.</ Americans, and other foreigners, who arrive 
here sw t^irlng at the Emperor, very soon come to 
swear hy him. Toward Paris, at least, all his 
plans look benevolent. The streets are clean ; the 
new buildings are uniform ; the police is omni- 
present ; the palaces of art are free to the public ; 
the cabmen are civil and their rates are low ; beg- 
gars are banished; and the Bois du Boulogne, 
where the imperial family daily mix with the 
nobility and the masses, is the most enchanting 
drive in the world. The Emperor and Empress are 
frequent visitors at the theatres, and there are no 
present indications of the fabrication of any more 
" infernal machines." The most guarded person of 
the palace is the pretty little Prince Imperial, 
whose carriage is always surrounded by a corps of 
cavalry. But the Emperor dashes about with his 
fast trotters a V Americaine^ without a guard, and 
apparently without fear. A man whose carriage 
has been pierced with forty-three fragments from 
3,n exploding machine, aimed at his life, while both 
Jiimself and the Empress are not even touched, 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 227 

may well have confidence in his destiny. Louis 
jN'apoleon believes that he was not born to be assas- 
sinated, and cherishes, as every man should, im- 
plicit faith in his own presentiments. 

Of the theatrical amnsements in Paris, I shall 
have more to say hereafter. At the Opera Comique, 
in the " Crown Diamonds," I have seen two charm- 
ing prima donnas — Bruille and Bella; both are 
beautiful women, fine singers, and excellent artists. 
Last evening, there was a very grand concert, under 
the patronage of the Empress, for the benefit of 
poor little girls, at which Frezzilini, Grisi, Mario, 
Alboni, and other public artistes, assisted ; and also 
M'me Conneau, a very beautiful and fashionable 
amateur. The tickets were twenty francs ; and the 
sum realized must have been very large, as the 
"Imperial Italian Theatre " was crowded in every 
part with the " creme de la creme " of the Paris 
aristocracy, who came out in full force and feather, 
making a splendid show of brilliants and bare 
necks, exhibiting at once their charms and their 
charity. As it w^as altogether one of the choicest 
and grandest concerts ever given in Paris, I give 
the programme for the especial benefit of music- 
loving readers : 

Premiere Par ^^6.—0uverture de " La Gazza Ladra," Eosini; 
" La Charity," M'mes Conneau, Grisi et choeurs — Rosini ; aria 



228 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OR, 

de "La Straniera," M. Oorsi — Bellini ; duo " Turco in Italia," 
M'me Oonnean, M. Zucchini — Kosini; "Noel," M. Kobin — 
Adam ; duo " Eoberto d'Evereux," M'me Grisi, M. Mario — 
Donizetti. 

Beuxieme Partie. — Duo " Mose," M. Miraglia, M. Oorsi — 
Eossini; air "Puritani," M'me Trezzilini — Bellini; duo 
"Gazza Ladra," M'me Oonneau, M'me Alboni — Eossini; 
"Otello," romanza, M'me Grisi — Eossini; arietta de " Col- 
lumella," M. Zuccliini— Fioravanti ; " Eigoletto," quatuor, 
M'mes Frezzolini, Alboni, MM. Mario, Oorsi — ^Yerdi. 

Troisieme Partie. — Eomance pour piano, " Jota Aragon- 
ese," M'Ue Marie Marchand — Mendelssohn ; " Trovatore," 
Miserere, M'me Oonneau, M. Mario, choeurs — Verdi ; " Italini 
in Algeri," trio, MM. Miraglia, Oorsi, Zucchini — Eossini ; 
Oavatine de " Betlj," M'me Alboni — Donizetti ; " Matrimo- 
nio Segreto," trio, M'mes Oonneau, Grisi, Alboni — Oimarosa ; 
"Mose," pri^re, M'mes Oonneau, Grisi, MM. Mario, Eobin — 
Eossini. 



The Emperor was present, and applauded every 
performance with discriminate enthusiasm. He 
used his lorgnette with great freedom, scanning 
with equal scrutiny the artistes and the audience. 
Louis I^apoleon does not impress one so much by 
his personal presence as by his political position, 
or, dramatically speaking, the majesty of his "situ- 
ation." He is short in stature, and not particu- 
larly remarkable in appearance. His forehead has 
a retreating outline, owing to the fullness of the 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 229 

perceptive faculties. In the region of firmness and 
self-esteem, his head is signally marked. 

"When his majesty entered his box, there was a 
general clapping of hands, which he cordially 
acknowledged by bowing to the audience before tak- 
ing his seat. He was plainly dressed in black, with 
a white cravat, and accompanied by three gentle- 
men only. The artists all bowed first to the Empe- 
ror before leaving the stage. Grisi and Mario have 
both grown a little stouter since leaving the United 
States, while the fresh and riante Alboni remains 
in statu qico. They all exerted themselves on this 
occasion to their utmost ; and I never heard them, or 
other artists, sing so well. Alboni, who lives in 
an elegant palace of her own in the Champs Ely- 
s6es, is engaged in Paris for four years, with Grisi 
and Mario ; and they are now playing " Don Gio- 
vanni " at the Italian Opera House, with an im- 
mense cast. It is a great treat to be there. 



230 SPAKKS FKOM A LOCOMOTIVE I OK, 



Matters and Things in Paris. 

The Sickles Tragedy — Jealousy — ^The Paris Verdict — Madame Gue- 
rabella — Bogus Counts — Dr. Gaillardet — Count Sartiges — Ameri- 
cans in Paris — Judge Mason — Consul Spencer — A Grand Review 
—A Monster Concert — Versailles — The Peace Congress. 

Hotel du Louvbe, 

March — , 1859. 

The Sickles tragedy is the prominent topic of 
discussion in the cafes of Paris. The French theory 
(and perhaps the correct one) is, that the really 
guilty party in. the sad aifair is the writer of the 
anonymous note, the meddlesome informer, who is 
presumed to be a woman jealous of Mrs. Sickles. 

" Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned." 

There is a lady here who knows a certain widow in 
Washington to whom Mr. Key had been for some 
time very devoted, who has been made miserable 
for a twelvemonth by the pangs of jealousy. Did 
she play the part of lago in the bloody drama? 
Perhaps. What is it that Shakspere says about 
"him who is wronged, not knowing that he is 



231 SPAEKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OK, 

wronged," etc., etc. " I found not Cassio's kisses on 
her lips," says Othello ; and surely, if ever ignorance 
is bliss, it is in a case like this. The London *' Times," 
in an article on the Washington tragedy, attributes 
the savage justice of Sickles to the savage condition 
of American society. The "Times" should remem- 
ber that when a gentleman in England discovers a 
poacher on his manor he shoots down the trespasser 
with impunity. Is not a man's wife a more sacred 
piece of private property than his sheep pasture ? 
The popular conclusion here, is, that the verdict in 
the Sicldes case will be, " served him right /" and 
that the effect of such summary vengeance will tend 
to a greater caution in the display of " signals." 
The society of Washington seems to have a little of 
the looseness of Paris, without the refinements; the 
temptations without the opportunities. Here the 
old classic aphorism is reversed ; and only Hymen 
is blind, while Love is particularly wide awake. 

There has been some excitement in the musical 
circles of Paris, especially among the Americans, 
by the debut^ at the Italian opera, of Madame 
Guerabella as Elvira, in the opera of Don Gio- 
vanni. She is the daughter of Samuel Ward, Esq., 
of IN^ew York, now American Consul at Bristol, 
England, and a grand-daughter of the late Gideon 
Lee, and is somewhat celebrated for her personal 



232 8PARKS FKOM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OE, 

beauty. It was the possession of this " fatal gift" 
that led her to marry a Russian count, who soon 
cruelly abandoned his fair young bride ; but mad- 
ame, the injured Countess, in company with her in- 
dignant mother, pursued the faithless fugitive to 
St. Petersburg, and made her complaint to the 
Emperor, who compelled the Count to legalize the 
marriage, and at the same instant to sign a docu- 
ment of divorce. Having accomplished her pur- 
pose, the Countess accomplishes herself for the 
stage ; and her beauty and talent, particularly the 
former, have secured her an engagement in Paris. 
She has been singing a week, and every night the 
house is densely crowded ; but, I am sorry to add, 
that on one or two evenings she has been most un- 
gallantly hissed. This, however, may be owing to 
a claque^ bribed by another prima donna, who is 
jealous of the personal charms of the handsome 
debutante. Such tricks are quite common in Paris. 
But Madame Guerabella's handsome form and face, 
with her pretty American hands and feet, will carry 
her through in spite of any little vocal deficiencies, 
which time may enable her to overcome. It is a 
most fortunate thing for our young American girls 
who form " entangling alliances" with bogus barons 
and courier counts, that they have a natural capital 
of beauty and talent to fall back upon. If I might 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. " 233 

venture to give a word of advice to our boarding- 
school beauties who come out to Paris to fledge, it 
would be simply a suggestion to refer to the police 
records of the city, before accepting the matrimo- 
nial ring from the hands of any of those Continental 
counts. There, for instance, they will find a minute 

history of the dashing Count , whose name is 

known on both sides of the Atlantic, and whose 
mother, still living, is a respectable fishwoman of 
Marseilles. He is just now flourishing in the service 
of a somewhat notorious l^ew York '' femme de 
Paris," who keeps half a dozen carriages, and makes 
a brilliant display in the Bois du Boulogne. 

In a walk in the Boulevards yesterday I met the 
notorious Gaillardet, the fugitive from justice and 
Officer Baker, with the red ribbon of " honor " in 
liis button-hole ! The American papers contain the 
rumor that the Count Sartiges has been recalled. 
This is not true, it is understood that the Count, who 
has had a fine house built in Paris during the past 
year, would like to reside here, but on the con- 
dition of his being appointed senator, which I have 
the best authority for stating cannot be done. The 
senators are appointed for life, with the comfortable 
salary of six thousand dollars a year. Among the 
Americans in Paris, who are living in elegant style, 
and whose hospitalities are proverbial and princely, 



234 



are James Phalen, Esq., Charles Astor Bristed, 
Esq., Mr. Butterfield and the Hon. Hamilton Fish. 
The latter is one of "nature's noblemen." He is 
looking forward with great pleasure to the coming 
summer to take him home to 'New York. Bristed 

trots the fastest horses on the Bois ; but sits the 

highest in his seat. Mr. Consul Spencer and Judge 
Mason both entertain their countrymen, who come 
with suitable social claims, handsomely and gener- 
ously; and the latter is decidedly more popular 
with the Americans in Paris than certain journals 
at home w^ould make us believe. Mr. Mason seems 
to be in excellent health and spirits, and is con- 
stantly occupied in attending to the endless wants 
of "the universal Yankee nation." His honest, 
homely manners and frank and hearty way of talk- 
ing present a not unpleasant contrast to the ordin- 
ary stiffness of diplomacy, and render the judge a 
decided favorite even at the Tuileries. Mr. Consul 
Spencer, like Mr. Joseph B. Chandler, our minister 
at !N^aples, is a zealous Catholic, who regards 
Bomanism as a great and glorious institution. It 
is a singular coincidence that both of these " repre- 
sentative men " should hail from the Quaker city 
of Philadelpliia. 

On Sunday last I w^itnessed the review of sixty 
thousand troops in the Champs de Mars. It was a 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 235 

gay and glittering spectacle. "When the Emperor 
entered the field, mounted on his beautiful bay and 
surrounded by his brilliant stafi*, the long lines 
simultaneously presented arms, making a flash of 
silver in the bright sunshine. The Empress 
Eugenie looking as lovely as a lily in her white hat 
and plumes, seated in an open barouche, followed 
the imperial cavalcade; and, with her graceful, 
comprehensive bows and sweet smiles, gleaned all 
hearts not already harvested by the Emperor. The 
field was surrounded by a deep fringe of the popu- 
lace, estimated at 400,000 ; and among them were 
thinly sprinkled the veterans of the Old Guard in 
cocked hats and surtouts, after the fashion of the 
Great ISTapoleon, many of them minus a leg or an 
arm, and exhibiting the scars of many a w^ell-f ought 
field. Although the crowd in the streets was im- 
mense, there was not the slightest disorder, neither 
was there any cheering on the approach of the 
Emperor. 

Erom the Champs de Mars we drove to the 
Palais d'Industrie, where a concert was given by 
six thousand singers^ and to about thirty thousand 
listeners. The building was packed full in every 
part — acres of human heads, whose upturned faces 
presented a sort of mosaic of the most extraordinary 
character, blending in the dim distance into undis- 



236 SPAEKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OK, 

tinguishable surface. The singing was like the 
" voice of many waters." On coming out of the 
Palace, I found the Champs Elysees, the Garden of 
the Tuileries and the Place de la Concorde also 
thronged, making the whole city seem like one vast 
ant-hill, and human life as cheap as flies. The 
Palace of Yersailles converts my pen into a silent 
exclamation point. Its grounds, its buildings, its 
fountains, its paintings utterly overwhelm the eye, 
the memory, and the imagination with their vast- 
ness and richness, with their grandeur and their 
glory. The Palace is not now inhabited, but is kept 
in perfect order. It is about twelve miles from 
Paris, and is reached by railroad. Of course, every 
stranger visits it, and everybody struggles to wreak 
his enthusiasm on paper, either for the public or 
for some private eye. But there are dreams too 
beautiful for words — ^memories so vaguely delicious 
that it would be a profanation to attempt to articu- 
late them. And of such is the unimaginable beauty 
of the Palace of Yersailles. 

The proposal for a Peace Congress has made 
buoyant the Bourses and the bosoms of all Europe. 
Only the speculators in human blood seem de- 
pressed by the pacific turn of events. 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 237 



Pere La Chaise. 

The Eomance of Death — The Commerce of the Grave — Devotion 
to the Dead — The Pantheon of Paris — Abelard and Eloise — The 
Opera — Tamberlik — Penco — Frezzolini — Meyerbeer's New Opera. 

Hotel du Louvre, Paris, 

March 80, 1859. 

The true Pantlieon of Paris is to be found in the 
beautiful necropohs of Pere La Chaise, for there 
repose the ashes, and there are recorded the names 
of the very divinities of France. 

Egotism is not only pardonable — it is altogether 
indispensable in letter- writing ; therefore, I will 
simply relate an account of my visit to this beau- 
tiful cemetery, where one, perhaps for the first 
time, feels the strange exhilaration of the romance 
of death I It was Sunday. The sky was cloudless. 
All Paris was abroad. My companion was a lovely 
woman, whose brilliant beauty was shaded and 
softened by a recent touch of the death-angel's 
wing. The mother's heart w^as broken ; and sym- 
pathy with her great sorrow was a fit preparation 



238 



8PAEKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OK, 



for the mournful, yet beautiful devotions of Pere 
La Chaise. We enter the city of the dead through 
a street that seems to be entirely employed in the 
sacred commerce of the grave. ]N'ot only monu- 
ments, obelisks, and all sorts of mortuary devices 
line the way on either side; but wreaths of 
" immortelles," white and yellow ; and baskets and 
bouquets of living flowers are hung in all the win- 
dows ; and offered for sale at every door. Leaving 
the carriage at the gateway, we enter the paved 
street which leads to the summit and the centre of 
the cemetery. Eows of cypress and willow line the 
avenues ; and the mansions of the dead are almost 
as compactly built as the houses of the living on 
the other side of the walls. Most of the large 
tombs are in the form of a small chai:)el ; and all 
are decorated with flowers, either fresh or withered, 
natural or artificial. In some we see a crucifix ; in 
others, a Christ on the Cross ; in others, a picture 
of the Yirgin ; and in many there are seats, where 
the mourners sit and read and pray; nursing at 
once the beautiful little forget-me-nots, which 
bloom so sweetly within the shadow of the tomb, 
and the pale flowers of remembrance in their own 
sad hearts. 

Gay, bright, pleasure-seeking Paris never seems 
so much in earnest as in its devotions to the dead. 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IK EUEOPE. 239 

All ranks, ages and conditions unite here in paying 
hearty homage to the tomb. Children are strewing 
flowers on the graves of their parents ; and parents 
are watering the rose-buds upon the graves of their 
little ones. Husbands and wives, who never 
deemed fidelity a duty in life, become suddenly 
faithful to the remains of the departed, showing 
more affection for the worthless casket that is left 
than for the priceles jewel that is gone. In the 
cypress groves of Pere la Chaise every mourner is a 
lover, and at every tomb there seems to be a sacred 
assignation, upon which the stranger fears to intrude. 
One feels in walking about here as if he were guilty 
of interrupting the secret amours of the dead! I 
know not why; it may be, perhaps, because we 
stand here in the eternal bridal chamber of Abelard 
and Eloise, whose tomb not only makes Pere la 
Chaise the classic graveground of the world, but 
whose memories consecrate the passion and secure 
the immortality of human love ; yet death seems 
here more like a wedding than a funeral ; and a sen- 
timent too serene for sorrow fills the fragrant atmo- 
sphere of the place, and gushes out in strains of joy- 
ous melody from the throat of " ilka bird that sings o' 
its love " in these blooming, nuptial bowers of death ; 
while the white-robed ones so sweetly sleep in their 
silent chambers " until the bridegroom cometh." 



240 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OR, 

I have called Pere la Chaise the Pantheon of Paris. 
Let us read a few of the names upon the doors of 
these "narrow houses:" Moliere ; Kacine ; Lafon- 
taine ; Casimir Delavigne ; Dupuytren ; Talma ; La- 
place ; Gay Lussac ; Macdonald ; St. Cyr ; Mas- 
sena ; ISTey ; Beauharnais ; Genlis ; Junot ; Boiel- 
dieu ; Martignac ; Madame Cottin ; Bellini ; Che- 
rnbini; Eachel; Beranger, and his Judith Frere, 
the poet's immortal " Lisette." What a gathering 
of the great names of France ? What a mingling 
of " dust, which, even in itself, is immortality !" 
And how calmly they sleep ! Ashes that once were 
fire, are now cold and still. There is no more revo- 
lution here — until the final resurrection. 

The cemetery of Pere la Chaise derives its name 
from the Father Confessor of Louis XIY., and for 
about a hundred and fifty years it was occupied by 
the Jesuits, as a sort of palatial country seat, it hav- 
ing been presented to the order by a female devo- 
tee. It is beautifully situated on high ground, in 
the northeastern part of Paris, overlooking the city 
and a vast extent of country. It was opened as a 
cemetery in 1804, and in its two hundred and 
twelve acres there are probably not less than a 
million of graves. . A section of the ground is ap- 
propriated to " the poor," who have no gold to gild 
their graves, but whose floral tributes seem none 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 241 

the less abundant. The Jews and Mussulmans, as 
well as " the Christians," have their sacred, secta- 
rian " inclosures." In the mosque of the Mohamme- 
dans lie the bodies of the Queen and the Prince of 
Oude ; while the surviving prince is daily dashing 
through the " Bois " in black plumes and glittering 
vestments. But I must not linger longer in this 
beautiful garden of the dead. It is a sweet and 
fascinating place ; and I can no longer marvel at 
the sentimentalism that covets the cypress shaded 
street of Pere la Chaise as a " last, long home." 
The dreary loneliness of the grave is banished from 
the spot where the living never cease their loving 
v^igils ; and where the flowers of remembrance are 
jQot only bedewed and renewed from day to day, 
and from year to year, but from generation to gene- 
ration ; and from century to century. Fresh wreaths 
are daily laid upon the tomb of Abelard and Eloise, 
and the sweet offerings will never cease, so long as 
a human heart lives to mourn " the love that fate 
forbids ;" or to cherish the love that cannot die ; at 
once the devotees and the victims of 

" That Faith, 



Whose martyrs are the broken heart." 

Almost every tombstone solicits a prayer for the 
dead. My orthodoxy, or heterodoxy, I scarcely 

11 



242 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OR, 

know wMch, suggests that it is too late / but if too 
late for the dead, surely it is not too late for the 
living. A prayer can only benefit him who prays. 
So — ''priez^pour luV^ 

To return to the land of the living. On Saturday 
evening last I heard the great tenor Tamberlik for 
the first time. It was in the opera of " Trovatore ;" 
and he sang gloriously. He is younger, stronger, 
and, on the whole, better than Mario. M'me Penco 
was the " Leonora," and M'Ue Acs did the role of 
the Gipsy ; the latter only so-so ; but Penco was 
very good. She does not, however, compare favora- 
bly with Frezzolini in this part, who is considered 
here as one of the most correct and artistic singers 
in Paris. Her school is perfect ; and since her 
return to Europe (or, as the critics here say, since 
she is like a bottle of Madeira, " de retour de 
I'Inde), she has grown stronger, handsomer, and in 
every sense more attractive. M'me Frezzolini intends 
going to the United States in June next. Her for- 
mer visit was interrupted; and as she "likes the 
country and the people, she means to see more of 
them." I understand she declines all engagements, 
but will manage her own aifairs. She is very 
popular in Paris, among the higher classes, and is 
much sought after to sing at the private concerts 
and soirees of the rich bankers and notabilities. 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 24:3 

But all the musical circles of Paris are just now on 
the qui vive for Meyerbeer's new opera, " Le Par- 
don de Ploermel," which will be brought out in a 
few days with great splendor. All the seats have 
been taken for the first night, for a month back. 



24:4: SPARKS FJROM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OK, 



From Paris to Florence. 

Adieu and au revoir — A Calypso Island — Unsophisticated Inno- 
— cence — The Tree of Knowledge — ^Modesty of Parisian Vices — 

A Pleasant Incident — Lady French Railways — Forests of 

Fontainebleau — Lyons — The Mediterranean — Marseilles — The 
Steamer Pausillipe — ^English Nobs and Snobs — Americans Abroad 
— Genoa — Its Odors and Black Spiders — Leghorn — ^Meeting of 
the Sisters — ^Pisa — Florence. 

Hotel d'Europe, Florence, 

ApHl, 1859. 

It is not an easy thing to break away from Paris, 
the very Paradise of social and intellectual plea- 
sures ; but there is a difference between the words 
^' odieu^'' and " au revoir /" and I drove to the 
Lyons Station with the promise of the latter in my 
heart. To one whose senses are all alive and 
active, Paris is a sort of ^' Calypso Island," and 
the longer we linger the stronger the charm — a 
charm composed of many elements, which I cannot 
now stop to analyze. At the risk of being con- 
sidered '' green ;" or perhaps accused of a lack of 
philosophical curiosity, I left Paris innocent of all 
those disgusting "sights" and " scenes" so greedily 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 245 

patronized by foreigners, and more especially by 
Americans. It may have been a namby-pamby 
vegetable sort of existence with " onr first parents " 
before " eating of the Tree of Knowledge of Good 
and Evil." ISfevertheless, all Adam's posterity, 
from that day to this, have been wishing they 
"hadn't done it." I do not pretend to know 
Paris, as I know little of its sins and its miseries. 
Externally, all is fair and beautiful. The streets 
exhibit no nuisances, no beggars, no drunkards ; 
nothing to offend the eye or the ear (but too often 
the nose) of the most fastidious. Every shop 
window is a study in art; every vista a picture; 
and almost every face one meets looks careless and 
happy. The vices of Paris are not obtrusive. They 
never pluck one by the sleeve, even in the ob- 
scurest portions of the city. However great the 
deception may be, it is the religion of the Parisian 
to seem gay, if not happy ; and many a face goes 
masked in smiles with the pangs of hunger gnaw- 
ing at the heart. A " triste figure " is an intoler- 
able offence in Paris. 

But I must awake from this epicurean dream. 
Italy — Rome are before me. The angel Hope 
stands ready to mitigate every parting regret by 
whispering pleasant promises of " glories yet to be 
revealed." 



246 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OR, 

The morning was bright and balmy, the 5th of 
April, and the air as mild as a 'New York June. 
It was nearly a twelve hours' journey to Lyons, 
and I had the prospect of enjoying the next very 
best thing to the best of company — silent solitude, 
and Uninterrupted observation and reflection. But 
in travelling one is always meeting " incidents by 
the way," and I had the good fortune to encounter 
a very agreeable one in the railway carriage from 
Paris. Of course, it was in the shape of a woman, 
and by no means an every-day one. Among the 
crowd in the waiting-room at the station, I saw but 
one person sufficiently remarkable in appearance to 
arrest the eye, or to excite curiosity. A tall lady, 
richly dressed in black, with an air of extraordinary 
insouciance, and self-possession, stood talking with 
a voluble little German, whose deferential manner, 
and universal information touching all the ways 
and means of continental travel, readily defined his 
position as that of Courier, commencing every sen- 
tence he uttered, with " Yes, my lady ;" " l^o, my 
lady ;" or, " If your ladyship please." By some 
mysterious force of gravitation, explainable, per- 
haps, on " the principle of the apple," I soon found 
myself in the same " voiture," and vis-d-'Ois to the 
lovely Lady , who proved to be too good a cos- 
mopolitan to require " a regular introduction " before 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 247 

eDtering into conversation. The young widow of 
a veteran English nobleman, with an ample for- 
tune, robust health, liberal education, a passionate 
love of art, and who has suffered just enough to 
ripen and mellow, without wilting and souring, 
it will be admitted by all men^ at least, possesses 
rare elements for pleasant society. It is not neces- 
sary to add that the time and distance from Paris 
to Lyons, from Lyons to Marseilles, from Mar- 
seilles to Genoa, from Genoa to Leghorn, and from 
Leghorn to Florence, have been very considerably 
abridged by the charming conversation of my acci- 
dental companion. 

The French railways are admirable in all respects. 
The carriages are comfortable; the conductors 
polite; the roads well made; the refreshment 
stations sumptuously provided; and the way the 
trains come up to time is really wonderful. I do 
not recollect that, in all the distance from Paris to 
Marseilles, we were either ahead of, or behind time 
a single minute. So mechanically punctual are 
the arrivals and departures, that all the time-pieces 
in the neighborhood are regulated by the move- 
ments of the trains. On leaving Paris, we pass 
through a rich, highly-cultivated, and exquisitely- 
picturesque country. Of the far-famed Forest of 
Fontainebleau, we catch but tantalizing glimpses. 



248 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OE, 

Enough, however, is revealed to give one a touch 
of the enchantment, inspiring a dreamy hope of 
future wanderings beneath the soft shadows, and by 
the " still waters " of those royal groves. 

We passed the night at Lyons — a large and 
thrifty city, famous, as all the world knows, for its 
silk manufactories. A comfortable hotel; a good 
supper; a refreshing bath, and a nice bed, soon 
won the " angel sleep," who came down with a pro- 
found blessing. Another crystal morning; an 
early promenade among the flower-girls in the 
Park ; a delicious roll and a bottle of claret, and we 
are again en train for Marseilles. The day grows 
warm ; the garrulous tongue of the courier grows 

weary; Lady exhausts her vocabulary of 

superlatives in venting her admiration of the varied 
and lovely panorama flashing by. Farms, gardens, 
villages, cities, chateaus, ancient castles, "ruins 
hoary," mountains, valleys, rivers, tunnels — all 
mingle in kaleidoscopic confusion ; and— 

" Like the Borealis race, 
Flit ere you their forms can trace." 

Kow we roll for many miles over a prairie-like 
level, covered with innumerable flocks of sheep; 
when the blue horizon seems to approach nearer 
and nearer. Startled at the phenomenon, we gaze 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 249 

more intently ; and find that the blue curtain of the 
skies has not fallen down ; only we see it reflected 
in the bright mirror of the MediteiTanean, spread 
out so calmly before us. 

Marseilles looks business-like. There is an 
American activity about the wharves; while the 
long rows of steamers and sailing vessels make a 
ITew Yorker feel quite at home. It seems easy 
from this point to compass the globe, as one can 
embark here, at almost any hour, for any port in the 
world. The city is flourishing under the new im- 
pulse given it by^Louis ISTapoleon, who is every- 
where breathing the breath of life into France. 

I have neither time nor taste for statistics. Be- 
sides, I have no desire to infringe upon the copyright 
of "Murray," whose indispensable "guides" are in 
the hands of every traveller. 

I had only from 4 o'clock p.m. to 11 o'clock of 
the following day, to devote to the commercial 
metropolis of France ; scarcely time to take an im- 
pression ; much less, to form an opinion. The hotel 
" Beauveau," on the quay, was the selection of the 
courier. I will only say of it, that the views from 
the windows were vastly more agreeable than the 
odors. But it is necessary to habituate one's unso- 
phisticated olfactories to these continental smells, 
" ancient and flsh-like," which salute us on every 



250 SPARKS FKOM A LOCOMOTIVE; OK, 

turn, from tlie sinks and sewers of tlie streets ; and 
from the Idtcliens and coffee-rooms of tlie hotels. 
Garlick and bad tobacco, combined with, other nn- 
mentionable and intolerable hnman odors, are enongh 
to make the man in the moon "hold his nose." 
What a blessing to the race, if the world were 
governed by one man, supreme in authority and 
power, who should compel every human being on 
the globe to " wash and be clean," at least, once a 
week ! An evening at the opera house did not give 
me a very favorable idea of the musical taste of the 
Marseillaise. The performance of "La Dame 
Blanche " was a very weak affair. It should have 
been announced as La Dame BlancJiisseuse. 
Artists, orchestra, chorus, all unworthy of criticism. 
Again en route. The fine steamer " Pausillipe," 
punctual to her announcement, glides gently from 
her moorings. The city retreats and diminishes 
like a vanishing picture ; the rugged, rocky coast 
towers, over us as we "hug" it; and the "blue 
Mediterranean" sparkles around us, like a mirror of 
molten steel. The sky is cloudless ; the sea tran- 
quil; the passengers social and jolly. But what a 
medley ! Almost every nation is represented ; while 
the English and Americans predominate. Among 
the more notable are the Earl of Sefton ; and Sir 
George Wombwell ; the latter, though scarcely 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUEOPE. 251 

twenty-five, onfe of the " noble six Imndred " 
who made the desperate charge at Balaldava. 
The Earl of Sefton, still more juvenile, was also in 
the Crimea ; bnt boyish as he seems, he is an im- 
portant member of the House of Lords ; the pro- 
prietor of a magnificent estate near Liverpool ; and 
enjoys an income of $500,000 a year. Like all 
English noblemen of high position, the Earl of 
Sefton makes no display of wealth or rank. He 
does not deem it necessary to stick a glass in his 
eye, screw up his face, and turn up his nose at 
everything he sees. On the contrary, your genu- 
ine nobleman is always afi'able, always natural ; 
and as unlike the English snob, who "apes the 
aristocracy," as a monkey is to a man. The 
most agreeable and unaffected people I have thus 
far met in travelling belong to the highest rank of 
the English nobility ; while the most selfish, discon- 
tented, disagreeable specimens of humanity are of 
that very large, and somewhat doubtful class of 
Englishmen, who are forever assuming a position 
to which they have neither the title, nor the pro- 
mise. Dainty, disdainful, dissatisfied with every- 
thing but themselves, they are everywhere the 
bugbear of travellers, and detested even by the 
publicans who deplete their purses by flattering 
their vanities. I cannot better illustrate the differ- 
ence of the two classes alluded to, than by suggest- 



252 SPARKS FKOM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OE, 

ing (to those who know the parties) the name of 

Lord E'apier, and that of the cockney editor 

of the New York . Voild tout / 

Our American fellow-passengers were exceedingly 
agreeable people, 'New Yorkers and Philadelphians. 
The tie of nationality strengthens as the distance 
from home increases. I cannot agree with a fair 
conntry-woman whom I met in Paris, that " one 
goes abroad to get rid of Americans." Of course, 
there are men, and women too, whom we would 
prefer not to meet, even in heaven ; but as a gene- 
ral rule, I have been delighted to see the faces, 
known or unkown, of my fellow-countrymen in 
Europe. The men are gentlemanly and generous ; 
the women intelligent and beautiful. And then 
there is always an interchange of home sympathies, 
a sort of fraternal fellowship, which makes the 
stranger in a strange land feel less lonely and more 
secure. Pleasant days and nights we passed on the 
Mediterranean, which, although proverbially '' ca- 
pricious as a beautiful woman," had only smiles for 
the voyageurs of the " Pausillipe." The young moon 
was with us, lingering, lover-like, later and later 
every night ; while every star-eye in the heavens 
seemed to open wider, and to beam brighter as we 
floated dreamily by the classic shores, and beneath 
the poetic skies of Italy. 

The rnorning was misty as we entered the beauti- 



LIFE AND LIBEKTY IN EUROPE. 253 

ful harbor of Genoa; but tbe hazy veil rather 
heightened than hid the effect of the lovelj picture 
before us ; a picture with a charming background of 
hills, sprinkled with cottages and palaces. We had 
six hours to drive about the town, taking hasty 
views from the finest points, and visiting some of 
the most famous palaces of art. It was my first 
impression of an Italian city ; and, to confess the hon- 
est truth, the multitude of beggars, the " mauvaises 
odeuTS^^ and more intolerable than either, the multi- 
tiplicity of black spiders, in long robes, preposterous 
hats, and hypocritical faces, filled me with so great 
and general a disgust, that I could hardly appreci- 
ate the wonders of art exhibited (for a considera- 
tion) in the private residences of the nobility of 
Genoa, the far-famed city of "the adventurous 
Genoese." In driving through the streets we (and 
one of us was a lady !) were obliged to light our ciga- 
rettes, to mitigate the powerful and peculiar " odor 
of nationality," which, in certain localities, was quite 
too much for my lady's " gentle senses." So the 
courier was posted with the driver, to keep a look- 
out, and to give warning of the approach of UAn- 
glaise^ when her ladyship would adroitly manage to 
cover the tell-tale smoke with her veil. The pic- 
turesque views in the environs ; the beautiful bay, 
around whixjh the city is built; the sunset splen- 



254 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OR, 

dors of ancient palaces ; the rich historical associa- 
tions ; and the innumerable works of the great 
masters of painting, all these are not sufficient to 
counterbalance the nuisances I have mentioned; and 
one party, at least, returned to the " Pausillipe " 
with the exclamation, " I would not live in Genoa, 
if you would give me the place !" 

Another quiet night on the Mediterranean, and 
at sunrise we are steaming into the harbor of Leg- 
horn. The morning is brilliant beyond description. 
There is a diamond-like glitter on the sea, and the 
sky, absolutely dazzling. And here, as bright and 
as beaming as Aurora herself, we are met by Sig- 
norina Alfieri, the charming English prima donna, 
Italianized — the sister of my fair companion ; and 
then there is such a meeting, and such kissing as 
only long separated and much-loving sisters can un- 
derstand. A beautiful exhibition of an affection 
without selfishness and without sensuality — some- 
thing akin to the " loves of the angels." At Leg- 
horn we are tormented for a couple of hours by 
beggars, police, and custom-house officers ; to say 
nothing more, just now, of the black spiders that 
meet us at every turn, and watch us from every 
corner. Of the city of Leghorn I have nothing to 
say. It has, I believe, a considerable commerce, and 
is famous for the manufacture of straw hats. I was 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 255 

also assured that the place was thriving ; and seve- 
ral blocks of new buildings were proudly pointed 
out as an evidence of the new growth. But my 
only curiosity was to find my way out of the place 
at the earliest possible moment ; and so, after a cup 
of turgid cofiee, a miserable Italian imitation of a 
French roll, and the smell of a couple of eggs that 
might have been chickens, if I could have waited 
an hour or two longer for my breakfast, I had 
"done" (with) Leghorn, and was off by rail to 
Florence. In thirty minutes we are at Pisa, where 
we catch a glimpse of the " Leaning Tower." Like 
the prudent English mother, who wouldn't let her 
children go near it, for " fear it might fall," I also 
avoided the danger of a too near approach. Here 
most of the passengers left the cars ; because it is writ- 
teninthe "guide-books" that Pisa is one of the places 
to be visited. But my heart was yearning after 
Florence. Like the lover hastening to his mistress, I 
had no eyes for any object less lovely than the fair 
idol of my life-long dream. At the same time I 
approached it timidly, fearing that the reality might 
prove less beautiful than the soft city of my imagi- 
nation — the " fair Florence" of Poets and Artists who 
have sung and painted its beauties in strains and in 
colors that have made the very name a spell — the 
synonym of all that is enchanting in ISTature and 



256 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OK, 

glorious in Art. And this is Florence ! This the 
Arno that I have just crossed ; and yonder is Fie- 
sole, where the "starry Galileo" drew from the 
silent heavens the fearful heresy of the earth's rota- 
tion ! A bath, a dinner, and a drive ; and then, 
perhaps, I shall have something 'more to say of 
Florence. 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 257 



A Glance at Florence. 

The Rainbow Hues of Poesy — The Etrurian Athens — The Cascine— 
Santa Croce — More Black Spiders — The Boboli Gardens — Nature 
and Art — ^Virgins, Original and Pictured — An Hour with Powers 
— His Webster and Washington — Off for Rome. 

FlOBENCE, HOTEl, d'Euhope, 
April, 1859. 

Yes, I am disappointed, not to say disenclianted. 
The poets have exaggerated the beauties of the 
" smiling Arno," and the glories of the " Etrurian 
Athens." The rainbow hues which ^' Childe Ha- 
rold " has thrown oyer Italy, rainbow like, recede 
as we advance. Florence, " girt by her theatre of 
hills," is, indeed, a beautiful city ; and the Arno a 
very gentle and respectable little riyer ; but if the 
traveller, especially from America, were to meet 
with either, unconscious of the name it bore, the 
rapture of his enthusiasm would doubtless be very 
considerably abated. "We reached Florence in 
about three hours from Leghorn ; the road running 
through a pleasant, well cultivated country — grain 
and grapes being the principal products. The val- 



258 SPARKS FBOM A LOCOMOTIVE; OB, 

ley of tlie Arno is a garden. Behind the city there 
is a beantiful background of hills thickly sprinkled 
with villas. In these upper tiers of the grand am- 
phitheatre are situated the elegant loges of the 
Tuscan nobility; and also those of wealthy foreigners 
from every land. The great out-door attraction of 
Florence is the Cascine^ one of the most charming 
drives in the world. From four o'clock until dark 
it is crowded with carriages, whose occupants sit 
and look at each other with as vauohnoncJialance 
as they would gaze at pictures in a gallery. "While 
the band plays, the gentlemen usually " descend,'^ 
and visit from carriage to carriage ; the flower-girls 
tempting them at every step to " buy a sweet bou- 
quet for the most beautiful lady." The most aristo- 
cratic equipages here are English; but the most 
stunning " turn-out " is, of course, American. Mr. 

sports six or eight-in hand ; while his dashing 

femme often handles the ribbons. The famous 
church of Santa Groce I visited on Sunday. It is 
the Westminster Abbey of Italy : 



-"Here repose 



Angelo's, Alfieri's bones, and his, 
The starry Galileo with his woes ; — 
Here Machiavelli's earth returned to whence it rose." 

Unintelligible priests were preaching to two or 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 25 S 

tliree indifferent congregations, and hundreds 
were on their knees before the various altars ; some 
apparently absorbed in devotion, but the great 
majority, not excepting the black spiders, were 
glancing furtively at the numerous strangers who, 
as curious spectators, were comparing the inscrip- 
tions upon the tombs, with their descriptions in 
"Murray," most heretically forgetful of the solemni- 
ties of the " divine service !" But a beggar, in the 
shape of a whining priest, besieged us at every step ; 
and we were glad to quit the sombre associations of 
" Santa Croce's holy precincts," for the more cheer- 
ful scenes of the Boboli Gardens. 

Ah! what beauty, what enchantment is here! 
What magnificent views of the surrounding coun- 
try! what leafy arbors! what musical fountains! 
what charming, labyrinthine walks! The Pitti 
Palace is closed. What a pity ! But an hour in 
these fairy-like gardens is worth more than all the 
pictures and statues in Italy. Why seek the coun- 
terfeit in Art, when all the glory of living ]!!Tature 
is spread out before us ! The Palace of the Grand 
Duke of Tuscany contains no landscape as fine as 
those which smile upon us at every turn, and in 
ever-changing variety. And where is the Madonna 
on canvas, or the Yenus in marble, as lovely, as 
graceful, as enchanting, as the beautiful , a 



260 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OR, 

very master-work of perfection, designed, and 
molded, and finished by the Divine Artist Him- 
self! Bad taste thongh it may be, yet I must see 
something in these galleries of ancient and modern 
art, finer than the finest of living models, before I 
can get up any stereotype raptures over the forms 
and faces of painted or sculptured Beauty. Why 
rave about the perfection of an infant ''John" or 
" Jesus," when a little boy baby may be found in 
every city, more exquisite in " color and finish " 
than the pictures of Kaphael or the sculptures of 
Canova? And yet, we need not admire art the 
less, for loving nature more. I do not understand 
why it is so much more religious to adore the 
u Yirgin " of the painter, hanging lifeless on the wall, 
than the original, living, loving, breathing " thing 
itself!" I do not believe that adoration of the sem- 
blance makes me a saint ; nor that devotion to the 
veritable makes me a sinner. But this is heresy. 
The church demands the vice versa. 

An hour in Power's Studio has been the plea- 
santest hour I have passed in Florence. I called 
without an introduction, and felt, in a moment, 
that none was nece'ssary. It was Sunday, and the 
artist was resting from his labors, although wearing 
his working costume. He took me through all the 
various apartments of his extensive laboratory, and 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 261 

exhibited the models of all his grand and beautiful 
works npon which he has been engaged for more 
than twenty years. Among others, the " Webster," 
which has recently been forwarded to the city of 
Boston. Of this statue, Mr. Powers is justly 
proud ; and I trust it will meet with due apprecia- 
tion in America. The likenesss, the costume, the 
attitude are perfect. It is Websterian in every line 
and feature — the most senatorial looking figure the 
world can show. A Statue of Washington, recently 
finished for a Freemasons' Lodge in Yirginia, is 
another great triumph of genius ; and, I may add, 
a worthy tribute to the memory of the Pater 
Patrice. It bears a strong resemblance to Houdon ; 
with some nicer shades of characterization, which 
careful connoisseurs will regard as the most delicate 
touches of genius. The marble is so poetically pure, 
and the expression of the face so gravely benignant, 
yet so inflexibly firm, that I could have gazed on 
it for hours, with a still increasing admiration for the 
artist and his subject. The "Beauties " of Power's 
Studio are both allegorical and real ; some of the lat- 
ter being scarcely inferior to the most exquisite of his 
ideal creations. But I have not time even to 
enumerate the " busts " of belles, the " heads " of 
celebrities, or even the marble dreams of the great 
sculptor, whose every-day thoughts are petrified 



262 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OR, 

poems. Powers is still young; remarkably fine 
looking, with an eye and a smile tliat linger plea- 
santly in the memory. He is anxious to " go home 
on a visit;" and whenever he does, an ovation 
awaits him. 

A pleasant dinner-party at the magnificent 
" Cafe Galileo," recently opened ; a charming 
drive on the Cascine, and an evening at the opera, 
finish the day; and with it ends my stay in 
Florence. Why leave the fair city so soon? the 
reader will ask ; and I, also, am asking the same 
question of myself. Because, Rome is l)efoTe me. 
I cannot wait even here, to " inhale the ambrosial 
aspects" of the Queen City of Art, while the 
" Eternal City of the Soul " seems to beckon me 
away with ghostly hand. 

"Oh, Rome! 



The orphans of the heart must turn to thee, 
Lone mother of dead empires ! and control 
In their shut breasts their petty misery." 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUEOPE. 263 



The Eternal City. 

The Eoute to Eome — Boccacio — Siena — Piccolomini — Beggars — 
The Dome in the distance — Entrance to the City — The Crowd of 
Strangers — The Coliseum — St. Peter's — The new Venus — Ame- 
rican Artists and their Studios — The melodramatic spectacle of 
St. Peter's — The Pope riding in a Chair — Contrasts — The Hon. 
Mr. Stockton — Consul Glentworth — Americans in Rome — ^Ex-Pre- 
sident Pierce — A brief Biography. 

Rome, Hotel d'Angleteree, 

April, 1859. 

Feom Florence to Eome, the distance is about a 
hundred and eighty miles ; and the " diligenzia " 
performs the journey in thirty-four hours. The 
fare in the coupe is a little over fourteen scudi, or 
dollars. The early train took us to Siena, which we 
reached before eleven. It was raining profusely, 
but not violently, and the fair city, as I left it, 
looked like a beauty bathed in tears. I confess to 
a slight touch of sentimentalism in parting with a 
vision so lovely, and yet so sad. And this feeling 
was not a little aggravated by the necessity of 
uttering that choking word that " must be spoken " 
often — often, all along the wearisome journey of life. 



264 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OR, 

Lady remains in Florence and the 

fair city is no longer a dream, but a memory. 

The road to Siena runs through the country of 
Boceacio : 

" Who formed the Tuscan's siren tongue, 
That music in itself, whose sounds are song, 
The poetry of speech." 

The Arno accompanies us some distance from the 
city. The famous valley through which it flows 
abounds in corn and vines, and mulberry-trees. The 
scenery is varied and beautiful; but the peculiar 
enchantment consists in the rosy hues of poesy that 
tinge every hill and vale in Italy. The train stops 
a moment at Certaldo, just long enough for one to 
repeat the anathema of Childe Harold against the 
pious vandals who violated Boccacio's dust : 

" Even his tomb 

Uptorn, must bear the hyena bigot's wrong. 
No more amidst the meaner dead find room, 
Nor claim a passing sigh, because it told for whom /" 

Now every relic is held sacred, and in 1823 the 
Marchioness Lenzoni Medici, with a zeal worthy 
of her name, repaired the little house in which the 
author of the " Decameron " lived, decorating the 
rooms with his portraits and his works ; and even 



LIFE AND LTBEETY IN EUROPE. 265 

gathering the fragments of the stones which, more 
than fonr centuries ago, covered his grave. It is 
pleasant to note even the tardj honors which genius 
never fails to win. The martyrs of one century 
become the saints of the succeeding. The pro- 
phets are never understood in their " day and gene- 
ration." A cup of hemlock and a crown of thorns 
to-day ; and to-morrow the victims shall be canon- 
ized and deified. 

At the Siena station we leave the train ; but the 
" diligence " will not start for two hours. In the 
meantime, I am dragged through the narrow, 
dirty streets, by an officious, loquacious " commis- 
sionnaire," who insists on exhibiting the cathedral, 
and a thousand other things not worth seeing. The 
city contains a population of two hundred thou- 
sand, and all the larger houses are called palaces, 
among others that of the Piccolomini is proudly 
pointed out ; but it looks much less palatial than 
the commonest house in the Fifth Avenue ; while 
the surroundings are anything but attractive. I am 
inclined to think the bewitching little coquette, 
after what she has seen in JSTew York and London, 
will never be contented to " settle down " in so 
gloomy a " palace," or to breathe the atmosphere 
of so filthy a city. But she is quite a pet with the 

Sienese ; and my " commissionnaire " evidently re- 

12 



266 SPARKS FKOM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OR, 

garded her as one of the freshest glories of the place. 
In the railway carriage, from Leghorn to Florence, 
I noticed the name, " Maria Piccolomini," written 
on the glass window with a diamond ; bnt whether 
it was the advertising "dodge" of some "enter- 
prising impresario," or the devotion of some more 
ardent admirer, I will not pretend to decide. Siena 
is ancient in its appearance, ancient in its history, 
ancient in its arts, and also ancient in its smells. I 
took my seat in the " diligence," for the first time, 
with peculiar satisfaction; while the cracking of 
the postillion's whip, and the jingling of the little 
bells upon the bridles of the ugly little horses, 
made very pleasant music. 

The rain is over ; the clouds have disappeared ; 
the roads are fine ; and the country air never 
seemed so sweet and refreshing. "With the coup6 
all to myself and not a passenger with whom 
I can converse — and only with the conductor, by 
signs — ^I prepared to feast on the " charms of soli- 
tude " for thirty consecutive hours. But ah, there 
is no peace for the traveller in Italy. At every 
post, which recurred every hour, the police, the 
postillions, the priests and the miscellaneous beggars 
were an intolerable torment. I had melted down a 
" E'apoleon " into the smallest coin of the country, 
calculating that, by a prudent dispensation, this 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUKOPE. 267 

sum would prove sufficient to appease the more 
troublesome of these mendicant highwaymen. But 
what was one " E'apoleon " to the innumerable 
multitude of clamorous paupers who line all the 
road to Rome, and at every stopping-place thrust 
their lank fingers into the windows of the " dili- 
gence," accompanied by looks and signs, Sind _proqfs 
of sufiering that wring one's very heart out? 
It was like a single drop of water upon the thirsty 
desert of Sahara. And when that was gone, 
I could only say " Niente^^ and receive in 
reply some unintelligible anathema. The only 
alternative was to fasten the carriage doors and 
draw the curtains. And thus impri^ned I posted 
on, occasionally catching " forty winks ;" but only 
to dream of rags and wretchedness. The scenery, 
the cities, and the sights by the way, are they not 
all minutely described in " Murray ?" I shall not 
attempt to embroider a thought upon themes so 
threadbare ; and, as for personal incidents, they are 
all included in the three great nuisances of Italy — 
priests, passports, beggars. At two o'clock p.m. of 
the second day, I saw the dome of St. Peter's, 
twenty miles distant ; and from that moment all unea- 
siness, sleepiness, and disgust at wayside annoyances 
vanished like a morning mist. With a feeling 
amounting to a " new sensation," I sat gazing at the 



268 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OR, 

" Eternal City," bathed in the purple splendors of 
the declining snn ; while thoughts, memories, asso- 
ciations ; scraps of history, of poetry, of mythology ; 
the names of men, of women and of gods rushed 
tumultuously across my mind. Instead of attempt- 
ing to weave the fancies of the moment into words, 
I will at once subside into matters of fact ; and find 
my way as soon as possible to the Hotel d^ Angleterre. 
But I have already crossed the Tiber, entered the 
Porta del Popolo ; driven through the Corso ; 
caught a glimpse of the Pincian Hill in the soft 
light of the setting sun ; glanced at innumerable 
churches; and paused reverently before the por- 
tico of the Pantheon. And now, let me sleep in 
peace. St. Peter's and the Coliseum can wait until 
to-morrow. 

I find the city thronged with strangers; Holy 
Week is appK)aching ; and all the hotels are over- 
flowing. Thanks to my friend Butler of E"ew 
York, who arrived here some days before me, I am 
provided with a room and a bed in one of the " sky 
parlors " of the Angleterre. But I have no reason 
to complain of the elevation ; the Hon. Augustus 
Caesar Dodge and family occupy adjoining apart- 
ments ; and ex-President Pierce is only a little 
lower than the angels (in the next room). After 
the refreshment of a comf©rtable breakfast, and the 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 269 

contents of a package of letters from Paris, London 
and ISTew York, which I found awaiting me at the 
American Consulate I drove to the Colisenm, 
and thence to St. Peter's. The former is the grand- 
est, and the latter the most splendid structure in 
the world. At every visit the magnitude of both 
apparently increases, until the Coliseum seems to be 
the work of the Creator of the Universe ; and St. 
Peter's looks moi'e like a natural growth than a 
mechanical fabrication ; or, in the beautiful words 
of Emerson : 

*' The hand that rounded Peter's dome ; 
And arched the aisles of Christian Kome, 
Wrought in a sad sincerity : 
Himself from God he could not free, 
He builded better than he knew ; 
The conscious stone to beauty grew !" 

All the world here is just now greatly excited at 
the discovery of a rare treasure of art. A Yenus, 
which some enthusiastic connoisseurs insist is more 
beautiful than the Yenus de Medici, was dug up 
the other day in a vineyard in the suburbs. Fol- 
lowing the crowd, I visited the spot where this mar- 
vellous beauty had been so long buried ; but the 
statue had been removed to the " curiosity shop" of 
one of the most famous collectors of relics in Kome. 



270 SPAEK& FROM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OE, 

There we found a crowd gazing at the new wonder, 
which is calling forth the most extravagant encomi- 
ums of the artists, whose admiration is not abated, as 
usual, Kj any feeling of jealousy toward the sculp- 
tor. The statue is hadly, but not irreparably, 
mutilated. The head is off, but it can be easily 
replaced ; and the broken arms may also be " set " 
so as to restore all the original symmetry and effect. 
Above the knees, the statue is marvellously beau- 
tiful ; below, it looks a little weak. Immense sums 
are already bid for it '^ but the government will 
probably secure it for the gallery of the Vatican. 

Of the artists in Eome, and their works, volumes 
might be written. In the studio of the lamented 
Crawford, I could pass days in studying the beau- 
tiful works, finished and unfinished, of that eminent 
poet of the chisel. And, at Rogers', also, whose 
" Doors for the Capitol at Washington " are the 
admiration of all Rome, one may feast on beauty 
with an appetite ever growing by what it feeds on. 
His " Ruth " and his " Mdia" haunt us like a strain 
®f sweet music, or the memory of a pleasant dream. 
And Hosier's "Esther," "Pocahontas," "Indian 
Girl," " Prodigal Son," " Rebecca," " Young Ame- 
rica," etc., etc., are well worth a visit to Rome. 
Mr. Mosier goes to ]^ew York in the course of a 
few months, and will take some of his works with 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 271 

him. At Ives', there are admirable busts of Gen. 
Scott, Gov. Seward, and other eminent Americans ; 
and also a beautiful group called " Excelsior." At 
Beinhardt's, there are life-like heads of Senators 
Benjamin and Mason; a statue of " Hero waiting 
for Leander ;" and a splendid bust of Harry Stone, 
who is known here as the " American Prince ;" 
and surely he merits the title by a dispensation of 
the most elegant and princely hospitality. Story's 
studio is also much visited, where the versatile 
artist exhibits a " Cleopatra," a " Marguerite," a 
" Hero," a " Bacchus," and an admirable bust of his 
father, the late Chief Justice Story of Massachusetts. 
Miss Stebbins, of 'New York, a sister of Col. Steb- 
bins, has made a great hit by modelling a "Sailor" 
and a " Miner " for one of our Fifth Avenue mer- 
chants, who has made a fortune in coal and com- 
merce. And last, but by no means least in genius 
or fame, charming little Hattie Hosmer has de- 
lighted everybody with her " Captive Queen," her 
" Cenci," and her " Puck on a Mushroom." The 
artists I have named are all Americans ; and of 
them all, Americans have reason to be proud. 
Among the American painters here, Page, and 
Terry, and Whitridge, and Williams, and Thomp- 
son, are more than "promising" — they are fulfill- 
ing the promises and the predictions of earlier years 



272 SPAEKS FROM. A LOCOMOTIVE; OK, 

and of friends at home. Mr. Kid, of Albany, 
altliongh very young, is doing . exceedingly clever 
things. Of the vast art-treasnres of the Vatican, 
the churches, and the palaces of Eome, I shall 
refrain from speaking. Yolumes would be required 
to enumerate them, and whole libraries might be 
filled with " notes of admiration." The " Apollo," 
the " Laocoon," the " Dying Gladiator," must be 
seen — they cannot be described. I am writing 
simply a newspaper letter, and can give only hasty 
impressions. Take away its works of art, and ob- 
literate all associations of the past, and the city 
would scarcely be attractive as a residence. The 
drives on the "Pincian," and in the charming 
grounds of the " Yilla Borghese," are very delight- 
ful; but the streets of Rome are narrow and 
crooked ; and the sights and smells repulsive to 
northern senses. The beggars and the black spiders 
are as numerous and intrusive as the frogs in 
Egypt ; while the scarlet carriages of the cardinals, 
and the pompous parades of the Pope, are continu- 
ally reminding one of the awful inequalities and 
stupendous shams of a hollow, heartless and hypo- 
critical hierarchy. On "Palm Sunday," all the 
world crowded into St. Peter's. All the women 
were dressed in black, and with veils instead of 
bonnets. I saw his august Holiness borne through 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUKOPE. 273 

the churcli, seated in a gorgeous chair, supported 
upon the shoulders of the "highest dignitaries," 
while two thousand soldiers fell on their knees and 
presented arms as he passed ! The amiable-looking 
old man " blessed the people " with one hand, and 
took snuff with the other ! And all the pageantry 
and splendor of the occasion was intended to com- 
memorate the entry of the " meek and lowly Jesus" 
into Jerusalem, " sitting on an ass." ISTot even the 
glorious music, chanted by the choir concealed in a 
sort of golden cage, could make me forget, for a 
moment, the miserable mockery of this melancholy 
melo-drama; or regard the pomps and circum- 
stances of the day even with a feeling of patience. 
All the foreign ministers approach the Pope to kiss 
his holy toe, and to receive a tawdry piece of jim- 
crackery representing the " palm branch," except 
one / and it is hardly necessary to add that he is an 
American, worthy of the name — the Hon. Mr. 
Stockton. 

Of the society in Eome, I have seen little, excej^t 
Englishmen and Americans ; the latter are largely 
represented here. It is only necessary to mention 
the names of H. A. Stone, M. H. Grinnell, Beach 
Lawrence, H. A. Coit, J. E. Cooley, J. Eiggs, Prof. 
Haldeman, Hawthorne the author. Motley the histo- 
rian, Bigelow the editor, Franklin Pierce the ex-Presi- 

12* 



274 



OE, 



dent, witli tlie charming ladies who belong to them, 
to prove that America is well represented. And I 
mnst not omit to mention Mrs. General Scott, and 
Miss Charlotte Cushman, who contribute so largely 
to the pleasure of these social Eoman reunions. 
Mrs. Elizabeth Barrett Browning and her husband 
are also here ; and hosts of other celebrities from 
all parts of the world. Mr. Stockton, the Ameri- 
can Minister, seems to be exceedingly popular ; 
while Mr. Glentworth, our "Roman consul," devotes 
himself most gallantly and assiduously to the enter- 
tainment of his fair countrywomen. He is a very 
accomplished young gentleman ; speaks half a 
dozen languages ; dresses better than any man in 
Rome ; is a great favorite with the nobility ; dances 
at the Queen of Spain's balls ; and take him for all 
in all, he is a decided ornament to the diplomatic 
corps. But of all the " strangers of distinction " in 
Rome, none is more courted, or more respected, 
than our much abused ex-President, Eranklin 
Pierce. Modest, affable, and courteous, everybody 
is seeking his society with as much eagerness as he 
avoids publicity. He refuses all invitations, except 
it be to meet a few Americans ; and then — ^for in- 
stance, at a " codfish dinner" at Harry Stone's — we 
find him the most entertaining and the most agree- 
able of companions. He will leave soon for Eng- 



LIFE AND LIEKRTY IN EUROPE. 275 

land, whicli lie lias never visited, and wliere lie will 
find it difficult to avoid '-' all the honors" that await 
him. 1 see some of the American papers are urging 
Gen. Pierce's name as a candidate for the next Pre- 
sidential term ; but it is utterly useless. Nothing 
can induce him to accept a second nomination ; nor 
a public office of anj grade. ISTotwithstanding my 
own official " head" was one of the first to roll into 
the basket, under Gen. Pierce's administration, yet 
I cannot forbear saying, in all sincerity and truth, 
that I would sum up his biography in these brief 
words : He was a brave general, a patriotic Presi- 
dent, and an honest man. His enemies found it 
easy to abuse, but impossible to impeach him. 



2T6 SPARKS FROM A L(X)OMOTIVE ; OE, 



Napks and its Environs. 

Rome in Seven Days^Ruins — Religion — Black Spi<lers — The Pass- 
port Nuisance — A Casus Belli — A Hint for Congress — The Pontine 
Marshes — St. Paul — ^Vesuvius in the Distance — Naples, its Rags, 
and its Odors — Christ in the Tomb — The dying King — ^Pompeii 
— Sir John and Lady James — A new Translation of Tasso. 

Naples, Hotel Grande Bretagne, 

April 22, 1859. 

" EoME Seen in Ten Days," is the title of a little 
volume thrust into the hands of every stranger. It 
is a convenient guidebook to all the princijDal 
places of interest, and he who faithfully follows its 
directions, will be kept sufficiently busy for ten 
days, at least. But as I am simply making " calls" 
and not visits, I must see enough of Bome in seven 
days to satisfy, for the moment, the curiosity of a 
lifetime. The Coliseum by moonlight, St. Peter's 
on Palm Sunday, the Pincian at sunset, the ancient 
Forum, the palace of the Oeesars, the endless gal^ 
leries of the Yatican, the gorgeous frescoes of the 
Sistine Chapel, the stupendous aqueducts, and 
" ruins hoary " — all these I have visited again and 



LIFP] AND LTBP:RTY IN EUKOPE. 277 

again, and what were beautiful dreams on my way 
to Rome, have accompanied me as more companion- 
able memories on my way to JS'aples. The ancient, 
the solemn, the eternal city — ^whose streets have 
been trod by the feet, and whose soil has been 
watered by the blood of the apostles ! The mother 
of arts, and arms, and nations ; the home of the 
Caesars ; the glory and the grave of empires. 

" Antiquity appears to have begun 
Long after thy primeval race was run !" 

The city contains about 180,000 inhabitants, of 
whom 8,000 are priests, and probably 80,000 are 
beggars, for it is not an exaggeration to state, that 
every priest makes, at least, ten paupers. The 
black spiders must live, and that too, on the fat 
of the land. Alas for the poor flies whom they 
devour ! But I have already said enough on this 
subject to "make Eome howl," and the Jesuits will 
of course be after me " with a sharp stick." 

From Home, to ISTaples by diligence, is a tedious 
journey, of some thirty hours. Although the road 
puns through classic ground, through the very 
heart, as it were, of ancient history, yet the beg- 
gars, the police, and the passport nuisances are too 
much even for the " patience of Job." This passport 
imposition in Italy, is a flagrant casus lelli. Why 



278 SPAKKS FitOM A LOCOMOTIVE; OE, 

should an American citizen be insulted by sus- 
picious investigations and impertinent questions at 
every little one-horse town, in this miserable, priest- 
ridden, tyrant-trodden, God-forsaken Italy, and a 
tax levied at every little gate he passes ! Let a 
foreign power touch one of our vessels on the high 
seas, and war is at once declared. Is not the per- 
son and the purse of the traveller on the land as 
sacred as his property on the ocean? America 
requires no passports of foreigners, even when flow- 
ing in upon us from the prisons and lazarettoes of 
all the world ; and our government should demand 
reciprocity, and not permit its humblest citizen to be 
molested or even interrogated, except for good and 
sufiicient cause. I hope this matter of the " pass- 
port system " will be brought earnestly before Con- 
gress at its next session. Let our ministers at 
Rome and at N'aples demand absolute immunity 
from so gross an outrage, and if refused, let them 
be recalled, and non-intercourse proclaimed. It 
costs one four or five dollars to get into Home or 
ISTaples, and as much more to get out, besides being 
insolently questioned and taxed all along the road. 
Shall these petty bigots of the Church and State, 
whose tyranny intensifies in proportion to the 
smallness of the territory over which it is exer- 
cised, be longer permitted to insult the great and 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 279 

free republic of America, by thus taxing and 
annoying its citizens ? I trust we shall soon have a 
Congress and a President, who will insist on the 
protection of the rights and the persons of its 
citizens in every land, and who will treat the pass- 
port persecutions of Italy as a veritable casus 
helli. 

Our " diligence " makes but -^yq miles an hour ; 
and is drawn by two, four, six, or eight horses, ac- 
cording to the condition of the road ; and to them 
is sometimes added a huge pair of white oxen. 
Every hour, the team is changed, and with it the 
postillions, who never leave us without exhausting 
upon the passengers all the arts of m^endicity. "We 
left Rome by the Porta San Giovanna, and were at 
once on the new Yia Appia, the post road to 
Albano. Then comes the desolate Campagna, 
where, on every hand, the mighty ruins of aque- 
ducts, temples and palaces have almost relapsed 
into the original formations of nature. The Pon- 
tine Marshes, stretching for thirty-six miles from 
l!Tettuno to Terracina, are apparently" much less 
baneful than I had imagined. The plains are 
covered with buffaloes and black cattle; and the 
road, which is perfectly straight, is lined most of 
the way with trees, forming a beautiful shady 
canopy. A little further on is pointed out the spot 



SPARKS FROM. A LOCOMOTIVE ; OR, 

where Horace embarked on tlie canal ; and where 
St. Paul met his friends from Eome : " And so we 
went toward Ronae. And from thence, when the 
brethren heard of us, they came to meet us as far 
the Appii Forum, and the Three Taverns ; whom, 
when Paul saw, he thanked God, and took cou- 
rage." And yonder is the monastery where 
Thomas Aquinas was poisoned on his way to the 
Council of Lyons, in 1274. ]^ow we come to Terra- 
cina, the favorite city of Cicero and of Atticus ; 
and upon the summit of yonder mountain are seen 
the ruins of the famous Temple of the Sun. But I 
cannot even enumerate the classic sites and cities 
through which we pass ; nor linger either at Gaeta 
or Capua. In the early dawn of the bright morn- 
ing, the smoke-wreath upon the brow of Yesuvius 
is seen in the distance ; but six impatient hours 
must yet be endured before reaching the city of 
^Naples — my journey's end and aim. The country 
is level and highly cultivated ; but the road, though 
bad, seems to be made of ashes ; and the dust is in- 
tolerable. 

At length we enter the far-famed city, whose 
streets swarm with the most miserable and motley 
multitudes I have ever seen, and whose odors are 
calculated to give one a new interpretation of the 
proverb, " See Naples and die /" For surely one 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 281 

must lose all respect for tlie delicacy of his nose, or 
the sensibility of his stomach, who can live long in 
so foul an atmosphere as this. Choked sewers, rotten 
oranges, stale fish, stewed garlic, bad tobacco, 
filthy beggars, dirty priests, and the whole mass 
of perspiring, unwashed humanity, make up a com- 
pound offence of the most pungent, penetrating, and 
palpable description. One can almost cut it with a 
hnife. And this is the beautiful E'aples of history, 
of poetry, and of romance ! A city to be seen at a 
distance, with the wind in the right direction ! A 
very charming city to sail by, and to look at, but in- 
tolerable as a residence to senses refined, and to 
noses ''polite." The great commercial staple of 
the place is rags ; but, judging from the quantities 
one sees in the streets, it seems impossible that such 
a commodity can ever be exported. After the rags, 
the religion of l!Taples is, perhaps, the most notable 
feature. For the last forty hours not a wheel has 
been allowed to roll in the streets, nor even a don- 
key to be ridden. The bells of the churches and of 
the hotels are not permitted to be rung ; and they 
are even removed from the necks of goats and 
poodle dogs ! And why ? Because Christ is in the 
tomb I This morning " he is risen ;" and the whole 
day has been uproarious with cannon, and fire- 
crackers ; like the noisy nuisance of a Fourth of 



282 SPAEKS FEOM A LOCOMOTIVE; OK, 

Julj celebration. And all this, while tlie miserable 
old king is dying the most loathsome of deaths, hay- 
ing just received " extreme unction " from Rome — 
hy telegrajph ! It renders one liable to arrest, even 
to ask after the health of the dying sinner ; and so 
strict is the espionage of the police, that a young 
man, connected with one of the best families in 
l^aples, has been obliged to hide himself for ^yq 
weeks, for having simply said that he was " glad 
the exiled ISTeapolitans were so well received in 
England !" 

The drives in the suburbs of the city are very 
beautiful ; and strangers visiting IN^aples pass most 
of the time in excursions in the environs. Mount 
Vesuvius comes first in the list of attractions ; and 
everybody toils to the top, only to be disap- 
pointed, suffocated and fatigued. For one, I will 
make an exception to the general rule. I have 
heard of men, and women, too, who have found it 
impossible to resist the fiery fascinations of the 
crater, plunging headlong into its burning bosom ; 
as there have been instances of persons who have 
been made giddy by the mad rush of the Falls of 
iTiagara, leaping suddenly into the awful abyss. 
And so I will avoid the terrible temptation. A 
day in Pompeii, if less exciting, will be more satis- 
factory. Accompanied by a valet de plaoe^ I took 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 283 

an early start in a one-horse vehicle for a sixteen 
mile drive to the exhnmed city. The morning was 
very warm ; and soon after passing Herculanenm, 
whose gloomy streets we had explored, onr mnlish 
little animal made up his mind not to proceed 
another step. After being beaten into a mass of 
bruises by his brutal driver, we were compelled to 
succumb to the obstinate donkey and find another 
conveyance. The road is formed of pulverized lava, 
and every puff of wind fills the air with ashes. To 
protect our faces from the hot breath of the sirocco 
and the clouds of dust, we were compelled to use our 
handkerchiefs for veils. But a day in Pompeii 
more than compensates the traveller for all his 
annoyances and sufferings by the way ; and without 
attempting to give any impressions of the place, I 
will simply say that nothing in Italy, not even 
in Eome, has interested me half so much as the 
streets, the houses, the palaces, the temples, the 
baths and the theatres of this wonderful city, 
whose silent revelations of the life, the history, the 
habits, and the splendors of an almost forgotten peo- 
ple make one's heart beat audibly on entering its 
ghostly streets. The antiquarians, the novelists 
and the poets have left nothing new to be said of 
Pompeii, either in the day of its glory, or in the 
day of its resurrection. As yet, after a hundred 



284: SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OR, 

and ten years from the discovery, only a small por- 
tion of the city is uncovered ; but when Lonis 
Kapoleon becomes supreme in Italy, as he most' 
assuredly will, if he lives a few years longer, he 
will doubtless give the word for ten thousand men 
to go to work and bring to light all the hidden 
treasures of the long buried Etruscan Metropolis, 
the home of Cicero, of Seneca, of Sallust, of 
Claudius ; and, at the advent of the Christian Era, 
one of the most magnificent and sumptuous cities of 
the world. We returned to JSTaples by railroad ; 
but in consequence of the rigor of the E^eapolitan 
religion (?) we were compelled to walk from the 
station, two miles at least, to the Hotel Grande 
Bretagne. This was anything but a " Christian dis- 
pensation," to our weary party, and more especially 
oppressive to an American lady, who had 
already been some six hours on her little feet in 
the wearisome streets of Pomp^i. I will not ven- 
ture to record the emphatic " blessings " bestowed 
upon the head of the church for this annoyance. 
The " Borbonico," the great museum of ITaples, con- 
taining most of the relics discovered in Hercu- 
laneum and Pompeii, is just now closed, for religious 
reasons, and the San Carlo theatre also ; btit there 
is no edict that I have heard of, preventing a visit 
to Castellamare, to Sorrento, te Capri, to Psestum, 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 285 

to Salerno, to Pozzuoli, to tlie famous grottoes, or 
to Yirgil's Tomb. The mere mention of these 
names is sufficient to suggest days and weeks of 
pleasure — always to be found, not in, but around 
the city, beyond the torment of its beggars and its 
odors. The desagremens of the place have been 
greatly mitigated during rny brief sojourn here by 
the pleasant society of Sir John Kingston James 
and his accomplished lady, whom I had the good 
fortune to meet at the Hotel Grande Bretagne. 
Sir John is enthilsla-stically engaged in translating 
Tasso's " Jerusalem;" and judging from the cantos 
which he has read to me, it will be far superior in 
fidelity and melody to any previous translation. 
He intends publishing the work in London, with 
splendid illustrations (including an original portrait 
of the poet) some of the designs for which are 
exceedingly beautiful. 

To-morrow, I promise myself the happiness of quit- 
ting ]N"aples for Paris, where I may possibly have a 
few words to say by way of review of my brief epi- 
sode in Italy. 



286 8PAEKS FEOM A LOCOMOTIVE I OE, 



Paris Regained. 

Paradise after Purgatory — A Neapolitan Swindle thwarted — The 
Messagerie Imperiale — Civita Vecchia — Charlotte Cushman — 
Her Sister's Death — Gathering for the War — Jolly Soldiers — Pop- 
ular Enthusiasm for the Emperor — His Programme — The Pope 
between two Fires — The Dream of Liberty — Departure of Louis 
Napoleon — The "War Loan — The Opera — Frezzolini — A Scene 
at the " Italiens " — La Reine du Theatre — Madame Camille — Eis- 
tori — Her proposed Visit to America — Adieus. 

Paris, Grand Hotkl du Louvre, 
May, 1359. 

Parts, after Italy, is Paradise after Purgatory ; 
especially when one lias travelled by steamboat 
and rail-car for seventy-five consecutive honrs, 
almost without pause or repose. The baths, 
the beds, and the breakfasts of the Hotel du 
Louvre are indeed luxuries ; and sitting here in 
my quiet chamber, I find the reminiscences of Italy 
more agreeable than the realities. And so, I trust, 
it will be, as we look back from some pleasant ha- 
ven of the future upon all the painful experiences 
of this mortal life. To return to ISTaples; I had 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 287 

taken passage in the N'eapolitan steamer "Mon- 
ghibello," which was advertised to leave for Mar- 
seilles, direct, at four o'clock on Saturday, and had 
paid the fare, about thirtj-six scudi, or dollars. 
At two o'clock, P.M., of the same daj, I received 
a line from the office informing me that the steamer 
would not leave until Monday. Being determined 
to get out of JS^aples that afternoon, and learning 
that a French steamer would leave at the same 
hour, I drove at once to the office of the '' Monghi- 
bello," presented my ticket and demanded the 
money ; but was coolly told it could not he returned. 
There was no time to waste in words. Calling on 
Mr. Chandler, the American minister, I had the 
good luck to find him at home, and ready to act 
promptly in my behalf. " Drive instantly to the 
office of the Police," was his emphatic order to the 
coachman ; and there we obtained a command 
which made the agent's fingers shake while he 
counted out the amount of fare ; and not to me only, 
but to several others, who had been subjected to 
the same swindle, and who were about to depart 
minus their money. I mention this act of petty 
tyranny, and the mode of treating it, as a caution 
to the proprietors of the l^eapolitan steamers ; and 
also for the benefit of travellers, who will often find 
themselves the victims of similar attempts at rob- 



,288 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE *, OR, 

bery in Italy. By way of memorandum I will add, 
that the French steamers plying between Marseilles 
and the Italian ports are vastly superior in every 
respect to the Neapolitan — ^larger, safer, quicker, 
cleaner and surer. They belong to the " Messa- 
gerie Imperiale," and the vigilant government has 
its eye on them. The tables are excellent, and the 
price of passage not exorbitant. 

Early on Sunday morning we entered the harbor 
of Civita Yecchia ; and here a large accession of pas- 
sengers joined us, who had left Home at six o'clock 
by railroad, which performs the journey in about 
two hours. The road was opened while I was in 
Kome ; but not until some time after it was finished, 
nor until the public had been repeatedly disap- 
pointed by false announcements from day to day. 
Finally, the government bought all the shares of 
the Diligence Company ; the Pope went out and 
" blessed it ;" and now it runs regularly twice a 
day, to the infinite relief of travellers, who were 
formerly eight hours in travelling from Civita Yec- 
chia to Kome, with a tide of beggars besieging 
them all the way. Among the pleasant passengers 
who joined us at Civita, were Miss Charlotte Cush- 
man and Miss Stebbins, the sculptress — the former 
hastening to England to visit a dying sister. Tliere 
was a heavy shadow on the brow of the great tra- 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 289 

gedienne ; and I liave learned since arriving in 
Paris that her saddest presentiment has been ful- 
filled. The beautiful and'acconiplished Mrs. Mus- 
prat (" Charlotte's sister Susan"), is dead. 

We had pleasant weather, with " the blue above, 
and the blue below," all the way to Marseilles, 
where we arrived a little before sunset, on Monday 
evening. On entering the harbor, we met steamers 
coming out, crowded with French soldiers, on their 
way to the "War, and apparently far more joyous 
than the crowds that almost daily leave 'New York 
to seek their fortunes in the gold-fields of Cali- 
fornia. Taking the night train, we arrived in 
Lyons a little after sunrise, and thence, all the way 
to Paris, there was an endless train of troops. 
What shouting, cheering, singing, among these 
hundred thousand boys, for none looked older than 
twenty-five, that the Emperor is sending from Paris 
to Sardinia. It would seem as if they were rush- 
ing to a festival rather than to a fight, while gaily 
chanting the " Partir pour la Sarde." All Paris 
is sharing in the martial enthusiasm of the army, 
and notes of preparation are heard on every hand. 
A battalion of a thousand men leave every hour, 
after being reviewed and inspired by the Em- 
peror in the Court of the Tuileries. The mere 

sight of Louis ISTapoleon, with a banner in his hand 
13 



290 SPARKS FEOM A LOCOMOTIVE; OE, 

to present to tlie departing regiment, sets every 
soldier's heart on fire ; and so the troops leave 
France, drunk with a sort of wild enthnsiasn for — 
what? — glory or the grave. This declaration of 
War against Austria, has consolidated the Empire 
of E"apole6n, and disarmed his last enemy among 
the political factions of France. Even the " Secret 
Society of Assassins " have disbanded, and sent the 
Emperor a manifesto^ assuring him that his life is 
no longer in danger from " infernal machines," or 
the machinations of private malice. But Louis 
Napoleon is incapable of fear. His faith in his des- 
tiny and dynasty is absolute, and he will take the 
field in person, in the most implicit belief " that 
every bullet has its billet." He seems to be the 
only ruler in Europe who has a well-defined pro- 
gramme before him ; in other words, the only 
statesman or diplomatist of the age who knows 
what he is about. He has managed to place 
Austria in the wrong, to secure the alliance (active 
when needed) of Hussia ; and England must either 
remain neutral^ cooj^erate with France^ or revoht- 
lionize. The rights and wrongs of the "Italian 
question," I do not pro]30se to discuss. "Whether 
Italy will be in a condition for more " liberty," 
after the Austrians are driven out, is quite a doubt- 
ful matter. Unless the petty tyrants of I^apleSj and 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 291 

Rome, and Tuscany, and all the other miserable 
" one-borse " j)™c^P^^i^^^s, are also dethroned, 
" Italian independence " y/ill still remain, like the 
mirage of the desert, which ever flies before the 
panting camel. It may be, however, that ]^apo- 
leon intends to consolidate Italy under the nominal 
reign of the Prince Imperial of France. If so, the 
expulsion of Austria will be but the beginning of 
the revolution. The Pope, who is now between 
two fires — " blessing " Austria and " blessing " 
France — must, sooner or later, lay his temporal 
crown at the feet of that power, which, foi' the last 
ten years, has maintained both the spiritual and 
political authority of the Vatican. The Church 
regards Austria with peculiar favor; while at the 
same time, "^ve thousand French soldiers protect 
the life, and sustain the government of his Holiness 
in Rome! Surely this is an anomalous state of 
things, and one that cannot last. The Italians are 
dreaming of liberty with about as much reason 
as an infant cries for the moon. All the idle, 
young nobility are rushing into the army, because 
they have nothing else to do. In every little town 
in Tuscany, drums are beating, bugles sounding, 
and volunteers of all grades are gathering for the 
war. The contest will be seyere, and the sacrifice 
of human life terrific. At the present moment, no 



292 SPAEKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OR, 

one ventures to predict whether the struggle will 
be confined to Italy, or spread, like a conflagration, 
throughout Europe. But that the Austrians will 
ultimately be driyen out, there can be no reason- 
able doubt. And what then ? Wous verrons. 

The departure of the Emperor has made a day of 
unusual excitement in Paris. The Eue de Rivoli 
is choked with the crowd. The Empress accom- 
panies him to the station, looking most dramatically 
pale and sad. The cries of " Yive I'Empereur !" — 
" Yive rimperatrice !" — " Yive le Prince Im- 
perial !" rend the air as the brilliant cortege slowly 
passes. Louis I^apoleon looks as calm, and as 
smiling, as when, a tew evemngs since, I tried to 
read his heart in his face, as he sat in his box 
applauding Frezzolini at the opera, and looking as 
if no thought of war, or of empire ever shadowed 
his brow or agitated his heart. And yesterday, 
he walked and talked in the Garden of the Tuile- 
ries, seemingly all unconscious of the fact that the 
eyes of all Europe were upon him, and that he is to- 
day the one man of all the world " whose mandate 
to millions is doom." The Emperor's parting 
speeches and manifestoes are exceedingly eloquent, 
laconic, ISTapoleonic. He stirs up all the martial 
souvenirs of the past by allusions to names that 
have been baptized in fire on fields of glory ; and 



LIFE AND LIBEETY IN EUROPE. 293 

touches the tenderest sentiments of the people 
by "confiding to their loving care his wife and 
son," for whom all Paris is ready, if need be, to 
die. He will send the beautiful Empress daily a 
bouquet, whose language she alone can understand ! 
A little touch of romance with which all "France is 
delighted. 

It is not necessary to add that the war is popular 
in Paris. All the world is rushing to subscribe to 
the loan. The streets in which the books are 
opened are thronged hefore daylight in the morn- 
ing. Every man or woman who invests a " !I^apo- 
leon " in the stock becomes a sort of partner with 
the Government ; and already Jim hundred mil- 
lions of doll(W8 are offered I A few evenings since, 
a performance was given at the " Italiens " for the 
benefit of the Italian volunteers. The house was 
jammed, and the enthusiasm unbounded. The 
Opera, "Trovatore;" and the principal artists, 
Tamberlik and Frezzolini. The latter, who had 
been suffering for weeks from a severe illness, in- 
spired by the patriotic occasion, sang through three 
acts with an enthusiasm and power that startled 
and astonished even those most familiar with her 
wonderful talent. She was called out again and 
again, and compelled to repeat several morceaus. 
In the fourth and last act, after singing with Tam- 



294: SPAEKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE; OE, 

berlik in the grand duet, with what the French 
" Musical Journal" calls a "desperate perfection," the 
beautiful prima donna suddenly fainted and fell 
with a gasp that thrilled every heart and brought 
the whole house to its feet. The last wailing note 
of Leonore will long linger in the ears of all who 
heard it. The human voice never uttered a note 
more sweet or sad. It was like the last cry wrung 
from a heart crushed by love and sorrow. Or, like 
an over-strained harp, 

" Whose chord alone that breaks at night, 
Its tale of ruin tells." 

Madame Frezzolini is the most purely-perfect artist 
as well as one of the most beautiful women I have 
ever seen on the stage ; and all who know her well 
esteem as highly the loveliness of her character, as 
they admire the excellence of her talent, or the 
beauty of her person. Her form is tall, full and 
faultless in outline ; her voice, in its most colloquial 
tones, marvellously sweet and musical; and her 
eye, wonderful in its size, softness and versatility 
of expression. Altogether, she is the very embodi- 
ment of musical tragedy, and in her great role of 
Leonore^ which Yerdi says is unapproachable, 
every note seems laden with a tear, like a sweet 
flower with a dewdrop sparkling in its eye. E'o 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 295 

artist, however gifted, can utter sucli a tone, who 
has not loved and suffered much. There are 
touches of nature which genius itself can never 
simulate. Everywhere in Italy the name of Frezzo- 
lini awakens the most ardent expressions of admira- 
tion ; and I have seen enthusiasts in Eome drinking 
the Orvietto wine simply " because La Frezzolini 
is a native of that place," a little city, some fifty 
miles from Eome. For the benefit of the ladies, I 
may add, that " La Beine du Tlieatre^^ as the great 
Maestro Kossini calls her, is almost as famous for 
the perfection of her toilet as for the beauty of her 
singing. Her taste, like that of the Empress, is con- 
sidered unimpeachable; and her modiste — who can 
she be but Madame Camille, the celebrated dress- 
maker for all the royal dames of Europe; and for 

the beautiful Madame of N'ew York, 

Since my return to Paris, I have indulged libe- 
rally in the new luxury of seeing and hearing the 
great Ristori; who is, beyond all q^uestion, the 
grandest tragedienne now living ; and who, that is 
gone, has ever surpassed her in voice, in look, in 
action ? It is not necessary to understand the lan- 
guage to be thrilled by every word she utters. The 
efiect of her tones and gestures is wonderful — elec- 
trical. Every pose is a study for a sculptor ; and 
every lightning glance conveys a meaning more 



296 SPARKS FKOM A LOCOMOTIVE; OE, 

subtle than words. She is a little above the me- 
dium size, and decidedly fine-looking. In private 
conversation she is animated and playful ; by turns 
comic and tragic ; and always overflowing with the 
most intense enthusiasm, which sparkles in her fine 
blue eye, and makes eloquent every intonation of 
her voice. Madame Ristori intends visiting the 
United States next year ; but the '' speculators " 
might as well give her up as a hopeless case, and cease 
persecuting her with their preposterous propositions. 
She is already rich, the wife of the Count del Grille, 
has her arms full of beautiful children, and is en- 
cumbered with a dramatic company for some years 
on her hands. If she will compromise with her 
employees, and go to the United States, and merely 
give "readings," a la ¥ amij Jvemble, she can make 
more money in a twelvemonth than was ever pock- 
eted by any artist, except, perhaps, in the anoma- 
lous case of Jenny Lind. 

But time flies ; and nowhere so quickly as in 
Paris. Another drive in the beautiful ''Bois;" 
another dinner at Yoisin's ; another tour of the 
Boulevards ; another and another and an- 
other -. 'No, no ; the day has come ; the adieu 

must be spoken ; and—" I must leave thee, Paris P^ 
For all the kindness and comforts I have received 
during a sojourn of seven weeks at the "Louvre," 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 297 

a parting word of tlianks is due to M. Emile Pas- 
quier, the director ; to M. Emile Bricker, cliief of 
tlie apartments ; to M. Auguste Schneeliage, the 
seci^etary ; and to M. Louis Hoffman, " chief of all 
information and the posts," I am indebted for every 
possible attention. How much a polite and atten- 
tive landlord, or hotel clerk, or even servant, can 
do to make the guest feel at home, even in so vast 
an establishment as the " Grand Hotel du Louvre," 
with all its six hundred and fifty rooms, occupied 
by strangers from every land. They often remind 
us of the somewhat sad lines of the poet, who 
found 

" la all life's weary round, 
His warmest welcome at an inn." 



298 



Homeward Bound. 

London in its Glory—The Change of Ministry— The Great Battle 
Begun— The Allies Victorious— The Deluge to Come— The Head 
of the Church in a Tight Place— A Tonic for the Victims — Eng- 
land and America— Mother and Child— Gov. Seward Lionized in 
London — Lord Napier— Morley's Hotel— The Steamer Fulton- 
Priests and Prayers— Sandy Hook — The Last Spark. 

Steamer Fulton, Mid Ocean, 
June, 1859. 

LoNDOi^, at tlie end of Maj, when the parks and the 
palaces are in all their glory ; when everybody and 
everything is " in town f flower shows at Kensing- 
ton, at Sydenham ; and shows of still fairer flowers 
at the "Covent Garden;" pleasant drives and 
tempting dinners in all directions ; races, regattas, 
balls — what is there in all the world equal in splen- 
dor and attractiveness to London in its " season ?" 
After the continent, England looks grander, and 
richer, and more substantial than ever. The very 
earth seems firmer, and the men and women look 
more solid, more earnest, more worthy of im- 
mortality. If it is evening with the human race in 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 299 

Italy, and morning in America, surely it is high 
noon in England. With the sun on the meridian, 
the shadows disappear. But I am homeward 
bound, and all my thoughts have gone before me. 
The ]^st ten days in London have furnished topics 
sufficient for volumes ; and just at this moment, 
when Parliament is only convening to revolutionize 
the Ministry, I might venture to predict and to 
describe at least some of the leaders of the in-com- 
ing Cabinet. But I forbear. It is always safer 
and wiser to prophecy cifteT events than before. 
Lord Palmerston will doubtless succeed Lord 
Derby; and Cobden and Gibson will be among the 
elements of the composite Cabinet. The policy of 
the government toward France will be changed ; 
and Austria will receive neither aid nor comfort 
from England. The German sympathies of the 
Queen will be suppressed ; for Manchester hates the 
Hapsburgs. The London " Times " will cease firing 
at ITapoleon, and a strict neutrality will be main- 
tained. All these things are easily foreseen. The 
jSrst encounters between the two 'great armies on 
the Po, have resulted as all the world predicted, in 
favor of the allies. The Austrians fight like ma- 
chines ; while the French and the Italians go at the 
bloody w^ork with the most desperate enthusiasm. 
Besides, Austria, even in the Lombardo-Yenetian 



300 SPARKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OE, 

provinces, is figliting in an enemy's country; wliile 
tlie army of Napoleon is as much at home in Italy 
as in France. But there are terrible battles yet to 
be fought. Francis Joseph is about to take the 
field, at the head of &Ye hundred thousand men, 
and we shall soon see, upon the banks of the Mincio, 
one of "the bloodiest pictures in the book of Time." 
It makes one shudder to think of the terrible slaugh- 
ter and sacrifice of human life ; and sadder still is 
the fact that all this butchery is perpetrated in the 
sacred names of Liberty and Christ ! 

The Church of Rome divides its prayers and its 
blessings equally between the belligerent Powers ; 
and the same " Te Deum " will be chanted for a 
victory on either side ! The banners of both armies 
bear the Eagle and the Cross ; and both are fighting 
for the symbols rather than the substance. And 
yet after the deluge a new and better life may suc- 
ceed. Only, so far as Italy is concerned, it must be 
complete, and overwhelming. The tyrants of hoth 
GhiiTcli and State must he swe^t out together. As 
for the poor people, the eternal victims of supersti- 
tion and oppression, let them find a tonic in the 
burning words of the Poet, who hated both ; and 
be alike patient and ready : 

" Better, though each man's life-blood were a river, 
That it should flow, and overflow, than creep 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 301 

Through thousand lazy channels in our veins, 

Dammed like the dull canal with locks and chains, 

And moving, as a sick man in his sleep, 

Three paces, and then faltering ; — better be 

Where the extinguished Spartans still are free, 

In their proud chamel of Thermopylae, 

Than stagnate in our marsh — or o'er the deep 

My, and one current to the ocean add, 

One spirit to the souls our fathers had, 

One freeman more, America, to thee !" 

Of parting visits and parting thoughts in 
England, I lack heart as well as space to write. 
When words seem too weak to express one's grati- 
tude, or regret, silence is not only more eloquent 
but more satisfactory. I hare found in the dear 
old mother-land such hospitality and kindness as 
only mothers know how to bestow; and hence- 
forth I can never think of England and America as 
bearing toward each other any but the tender rela- 
tion of parent and child. Both have their faults, 
their foibles and their prejudices ; for both nations 
are made up of the common elements of fallible 
humanity. The parent must look leniently at the 
exuberances of the child ; while the child must not 
be impatient with the established habits and con- 
servative opinions of the parent. England has an 
aristocracy which has been built up by the blood, 
the beauty and the bravery, of a thousand years. 



302 SPARKS FEOM A LOCOMOTIVE; OK, 

When our republican institutions shall become as 
old and as mossy as England's ; when our flag, too, 
has 

" Braved a thousand years 
The battle and the breeze," 

let lis hope that our political inequalities and social 
infelicities maj be as few and as harmless as hers. 

Among the Americans now in London, Governor 
Seward is the leading "Lion." If he were a 
" crowned head " he could hardly receive more atten- 
tion from the highest ranks of the nobility. He 
will remain a month at "Fenton's," and then leave 
for Yienna and St. Petersburg. He also hopes to 
be able to visit Spain, and return in time for the 
opening of Congress. Lord Napier is " on a fur- 
lough ;" he will soon leave London for his post at 
the Hague, He is watching the prospect of a "min- 
isterial crisis," with peculiar interest. It is quite 
possible, that after a year or two, he will again be 
sent to Washington, The friendly demonstrations 
made in America on the eve of his departure, 
rather surprised the Derbyites. 'No British Min- 
ister abroad has ever received so flattering an ova- 
tion. The red-tape diplomacy of Downing street 
is probably a little piqued at the republican popu- 
larity of Lord ISTapier ; but they still insist that the 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUEOPE. 303 

transfer from Washington to the Hague is a step 
upward in the scale of diplomatic honors ! This is 
one of the whims of the Court. A more liberal 
gOYernment will, ere long, raise the salary and the 
grade of the American mission to that of Paris and 
, St. Petersburg ; and tJien^ I trust, we shall again see 
Lord and Lady JSTapier '' decorating and cheering " 
the social circles of Washington. 

With a good word for " Morley's Hotel," where I 
have passed two delightful months, without cause 
for a single complaint, I must bid adieu to London. 
At eight o'clock we are en route for Southampton, 
where the steamer " Fulton " is expected at four. 
The road runs through a most beautiful country, 
cultivated like a garden. At eleven, we reach 
the pleasant and flourishing port of debarkation, 
and at half-past four depart in a little steamer for 
Cowes. Here we have an hour to look through the 
little town, so like our own charming IlTewport, 
catch a glimpse of " Osborne House," when the 
" Fulton's " gun announces her arrival, and hurries 
us away. In a few minutes we are alongside ; one 
more change is made, and then with my wandering 
feet on the deck of the noble steamer, I felt as if ■ 
standing on a bridge leading to E'ew York. It was 
home. 

We have over a hundred and thirty passengers ; 



304: SPAEKS FROM A LOCOMOTIVE ; OE, 

and among them some very clever and agreeable 
ladies and gentlemen. Captain Wotton is " a per- 
fect brick ;" and his ship one of the finest, cleanest, 
easiest and safest vessels afloat. The tables and the 
attendance are all that can be desired. Thus far, 
we have had fine weather, and no accident or inci- 
dent worth recording, except the birth of an infant, 
which has been christened "Tultona," in honor of 
the ship ; and the magnificent bnt somewhat chill- 
ing and fearful spectacles of icebergs. Occasionally 
it has been a little rough, when the women, as 
usual, have been desperately sick and begged to be 
thrown overboard^ -With .one, bishop, and two or 
three priests on boardjv.-'f religion's- Services" have 
been liberally dispensed ; and sermons, psalms, and 
prayers have abounded. In the intervals, the more 
profane portion of the passengers have enlivened us 
with negro minstrelsy. Touching these public reli- 
gious " services " on board of ships filled with peo- 
ple of miscellaneous sects, I have only one thing 
to say : — ^I could not help thinking that the saint 
with the longest face, who so piously " partook of 
the sacrament " yesterday, would be the first to rush 
for the lifeboat in case of danger to-day ; while the 
poor outside sinner, who dared not touch the " conse- 
crated cup," would never think of himself in the 
hour of peril until all the women and children were 



LIFE AND LIBERTY IN EUROPE. 



305 



saved. Selfishness is the religion of the hypocrite ; 
but self-abnegation is the religion of nature. Upon 
this text one may tliirik sermons, if it is not prudent 
to write them. But Sandy Hook Lights are twink- 
ling brightly in the distance ; and so, with my jour- 
ney ends my reverie. The ship is moored ; the 
steam is exhausted ; the fires are extinguished ; and 

—THE SPARKS ARE OUT. 



Telle est la Vie / 



8 Apr 1.1160 



